Falcon Strijks blow as forward
Andrew Strijk wants to return to his favourite position at half-back, but he may be playing too well to have that luxury.
An aching knee and West Perth’s younger legs in defence forced the veteran to be used as a permanent forward against Claremont on Saturday.
And the experiment worked so well that Strijk not only equalled his best WAFL return of four goals — by time-on in the second term — but had a profound influence on his team’s nail-biting seven-point win.
“I was a bit sore going into the game and the strategy was to not run quite as much but still have an impact,” Strijk said.
“I still prefer to play half-back flank, but we will have to see what is best for the team. It is likely I will go more wing, half-forward as the season goes on.”
Scores were level with two minutes to play at Kulin’s lush Freebairn Recreation Centre, the legacy of a local farmer’s bequest to the district, before Joel Leeson’s hurried behind in the dying moments gave the Falcons the advantage.
Michael Lourey’s bonus goal on the final siren completed the score at 15.11 (101) to 15.4 (94) and sparked vigorous celebrations as West Perth recorded their third win of the season.
Strijk’s move forward allowed Luke Meadows to occupy the vacancy in defence and the 21-year-old responded so well that he was best afield and one of several Falcons to produce career-best efforts.
Meadows gathered 33 possess-ions in his 33rd match over four seasons, but it was the precision of his ball use and ability to find his way through heavy traffic that made him the standout.
“He has such good hands, is clean, is a good kick and is hard at it,” Strijk said.
“I reckon he will be a very good footballer for this club for a long time, but he is also every chance to get drafted.”
Leeson kicked four goals in the second half to highlight his off-season move from Perth, while second-gamer Dean Munns survived a ferocious physical buffeting to tag Jye Bolton out of the match.
Shane Nelson’s prolific clear-ance work was pivotal to West Perth’s success, though Claremont were punished for their wayward kicking and ill-discipline, with a double 50m penalty resulting in a goal in the second term and a dozen turnovers in the middle and defence costly.
Young defender Bailey Rogers shut down Max Duffy to be a shining light for the Tigers, while Brandon Franz eclipsed Lourey for all but the final act of the match.
