WEEKLY REVIEW | FUTURES ROUND 4

Round 4 of the Futures program saw Peel play host to Claremont in a stand-alone night game at Lane Group Stadium on Friday 31^st March.  After consultation with Claremont it was agreed that Peel would select a side that would see both sides evenly matched on talent. Peel took the opportunity to add 2 of their South West based players into the 25 man team and didn’t select any of their developing bottom aged colts players.

Excitement was in the air for their first night game of the carnival but Claremont were keen to dampen Peel’s sprits and hit the scoreboard early with 2 goals in the first half of the quarter. Peel looked dangerous going forward thanks to some new faces in the forward line providing energy and movement and got their rewards with Jye Wearing and Trey Foster both kicking goals to send Peel into the first break with a 3 point lead.

The second quarter saw Peel dominate possession of the ball around the ground, in turn giving plenty of shots on goal but inaccurate kicking saw only 2 goals to go with the 7 behinds kicked from 18 forward 50 entries. Foster and Alex Greco both goaled in the term to extend Peel’s lead to 9 points at the main break.

The half time break saw some minor changes to the line-up but the main emphasis was to keep exposing the players to their new roles / positions. Cruz McCagh was moved to a more attacking half back position and looked comfortable in the role, while Lexcen King was added to the ruck rotation where he provided good options around the ground.

The third quarter saw the tempo of the game go up a little and Claremont were able to make the most of their chances. With Peel’s backline under pressure it was Lucas Bridger and Riley Crowd who stood up and showed composure with the ball stop the flow. Peel’s lead had now evaporated and with a quarter to play, were trailing by 4 points.

The THOR trademarks of Trust and Honesty were the theme of the day and it was going to take both of those traits to overcome the Tigers in the final quarter. Both Nick Clifton and Brodyn Robinson lead by example in the quarter and when Latrell May kicked his 3^rd for the game, Peel were coming and trailed by a solitary point with 9 minutes to play. The remainder of the quarter saw Claremont pull away and in the end came up victors by 13 points.

On reflection, Peel’s inaccuracy and lapses in concentration for parts of the game may have been the difference on the night.

The night came to a close with all of the players and staff out on the ground enjoying a chance to catch-up with some pizza and a cool drink in an initiative by both clubs to remind ourselves of what this Futures program is all about.

Peel’s players of note were:

Trey Foster with 2 goals in a new role as a key forward option.

Brodyn Robinson who played a clever game and featured in numerous chains of play.

Alex Greco who continues to get to good positions and deliver well by foot.

Riley Crowd who defended well and provided drive from the back line.

Our next game will be against East Fremantle on Good Friday at Lane Group Stadium at 9am.