The Swans thwart Peel at Qualifiers

Peel Thunder fell short against Swan Districts in the qualifying final on Saturday, which saw both sides hungry for a win.

For the third round in a row a light drizzle set the scene for the showdown at Rushton Park, and on the line: the easiest route to seizing the WAFL premiership.

The winner of Swans Vs Peel would next face East Perth and with success, head straight to the Grand Final. The team that fell short have a far more unstable path ahead, with the chance of elimination next game.

The Swans made an early impact on the scoreboard, with forward Jackson Mclachlan taking the team’s first goal of the match four minutes into the first term.

He was swiftly followed by teammate Leigh Kohlmann, who kicked another straight from the clearance.

But Peel Thunder were hungrier still, with composed play that carried the ball down the central corridor to Will Brodie (27 disposals, four tackles) who made a stunning deep kick right into the waiting arms of Tom Emmett.

Emmett secured Peel’s first and they were away.

High momentum continued in the first term, as Peel Thunder collected three consecutive goals in just under five minutes.

Liam Reidy was in fine form, winning 65 hitouts to Swans Ruck Jesse Glass-MCasker’s 17 over the course of the match.

Michael Sellwood (18 disposals) was a strong force in the backline, making a clean intercept on the Swans counterattack, which he craftily kicked to Taberner who converted it, marking Peel’s fourth goal without reply.

The Swans, however, were not deterred by the Thunder’s early lead.

The two teams managed a goal apiece before the siren sounded marking the end of the first quarter, which had revealed the intense nature of the game ahead.  

Swan’s fans were loud and energetic as the second quarter commenced, with the team flying out onto the field and straight into two easy goals from Jackson Mclachlan and Brad Lynch.

Lynch took another moments later, and Peel started to lose their cool, as the Swans took the lead for the first time since their early goals in the opening minutes of the match.

12 minutes into the second term and Peel were unable to get their hands on the ball inside forward 50.

Matt Taberner (three goals, five tackles) had his first opportunity inside 50, 15 minutes in but it went wide.

He got another chance soon after when he tackled a Swan player who was called for holding the ball. He misses it again.

The Swans made a strong play along the sideline, effectively handballing all the way down to their end where Kohlmann took his second goal of the game.

Peel only managed two behinds in the second quarter leaving them trailing by 11 heading into the second half.

Regardless of any pep talks made at half time, Peel continued to blunder in the third term, as Swan’s Nik Rokahr kicked a goal and Peel’s Matt Taberner missed his third of the match.

Swan Districts took another, their sixth consecutive goal, while Peel pushed hard to make amends on the scoreboard but kick too deep on the boundary line.

The intensity from Peel’s backline picked up in the third, with Hugh Davies (three tackles) keeping the team composed while faced with aggressive forward plays from the Swans.

The final term saw Peel trailing by 17, and some scrappy play.

Hope in sight for both Peel and Swans fans, but no final lift in energy as both sides carry the ball back and forth from both ends of the field without a goal for 17 minutes.

The two sides got one each before the siren sounded for the last time, and a disheartened Peel Thunder trudged off the field.

The final score for the qualifying final between Peel Thunder and Swan Districts was 10.5 (65) to 7.6 (48)

Speaking post-match, half-back Jacob Hewitt (11 disposals, two tackles) reflected on Peels loss in his first ever finals game.

“A pretty disappointing result for us, we pride ourselves on being better than that.”

“They came out and hunted us, were a bit more desperate than us. They played the full four quarters, and we didn’t, so credit to them.”

Hewitt praised Sellwood for his strength in the backline.

“He's one of the best teammates you can have. He is obviously pretty courageous and puts his head over the ball, goes out with a fight.”

Peel will now face Claremont in a knockout semifinal on Sunday 8^th of September at Lane Group Stadium.

PEEL THUNDER: 5.0 5.1 6.4 7.6 (48)

SWAN DISTRICTS: 3.1 7.2 9.3 10.5 (65)

By Beth Mackiewicz, Curtin University