Falcons rejoice at Royal ravashing

Apart from various grand finals over the past century, it is unlikely West Perth have ever had a sweeter victory over their arch rivals East Perth.

They have certainly never had a bigger win than their first century victory over their old enemy.

West Perth burst East Perth’s bubble in emphatic fashion to repeat the outcome and nature of last year’s grand final.

Catching the Royals off their guard after six West Coast players were called up for duty in Geelong, West Perth thrashed their arch rivals by a record 100 points to underline their own premiership credentials.

No West Perth team in the 330 previous meetings with East Perth have won by more than the 88 point margin produced in 1964.

West Perth won virtually every position on the field after a brutal opening 20 minutes played at grand final intensity at Medibank Stadium.

They led by just five points at the first break but took only a few minutes into the next term to stamp their authority on the game before winning 22.17 (149) to 7.7 (49).

East Perth’s much vaunted defence was stretched by the size and endeavour of their opponents with Anthony Tsalikis (six goals) and Marcus Adams (five) while Matthew Fowler (four) set the standard in the early stages by beating Blayne Wilson in several critical one-on-one encounters.

West Perth claimed a remarkable 25 marks inside their forward 50 zone to crush the undermanned East Perth defence and reward the winning midfield for their strong efforts.

Rohan Kerr had a remarkable third quarter when he had 14 disposals in a game total of 26 to complement the match-winning displays of Andrew Strijk and Jordan Jones.

The Royals were unable to generate any momentum but the indefatigable Craig Wulff produced a typically courageous display while Brett Dobson and Steven Payne gave their all.

The impact of the AFL players going out of the team was revealed further when the East Perth reserves lost by 121 points.