Quality influx for Swans
Captain Tallan Ames, midfielders Blaine Boekhorst and Matt Riggio and key forward Tim Geappen were among seven inclusions in the Swan Districts team for today's clash against South Fremantle at Steel Blue Oval.
Ames missed his team's 35-point loss to East Perth in Bun- bury last Saturday after being knocked out in the previous round.
That continued an unlucky run for the experienced key defender who received broken ribs and a punctured lung in the State team's win over the NEAFL at Blacktown in May.
Geappen was suspended for one match. Boekhorst, Riggio, Adam Faulkner and Matt Jukes lined up in the reserves in an attempt to regain form after Swans lost badly to West Perth.
Widely tipped to finish last at the start of the season, competition surprise packet Swans have already qualified for the finals.
Coach Greg Harding said Swan Districts were treating today's game like "a new start to the season", keen to regain the form which swept the team to the top of the ladder in rounds eight and nine after winning eight of their first nine games.
"When you look back over our last eight weeks, our form has been muddling and we were slowly but surely getting away from what made us such a good team early in the season," Harding said.
"Everything we are doing at the moment is being able to perform at our best in the finals series.
"We are getting boys back into the system who have performed so well over the course of the year and starting to get some stability back in the side."
South Fremantle picked State under-18 player Jarrod Garlett to make his league debut.
Perth regained skipper Paul Bevan as well as league regulars Chris Billings, Michael Florio and Nick Kane for the clash with East Perth at Lathlain Park.
The Royals included midfielder Thomas Shanahan to play his first league match.
Subiaco regained ruckman Frank Stockley while classy Claremont forward Andrew Foster was ruled out of today's game at Medibank Stadium because of a recurrence of a back injury.
Peel called in Fremantle squad members Clancee Pearce, Garr- ick Ibbotson, Kepler Bradley and Michael Apeness with AFL teammates Matt de Boer and Nick Suban also expected to line up against West Perth at Bendigo Bank Stadium.
Experienced Falcons defender Jordan Jones (knee) was ruled out because of injury.
