WAFL Match Report: Round Six v Eagles

by Liam Maher

East Perth have made it back-to-back wins after a commanding performance against West Coast. The Royals put together one of their best performance of the season, reaffirming their form as one of the best teams in WAFL this season. The final margin was 60 points on a good day for East Perth (18.10 – 118) to (9.4 – 58).

An early start to this week’s game, and it was played in nice sunny weather. East Perth looked to attack early, with both former West Coast players Coby Burgiel and Jordyn Baker scoring the first two goals of the game. The Royals moved to ball with pace and precision to start the game. The only issue was converting their chances to scores.

East Perth led the inside 50 count 16 to seven in the first quarter, showing their early dominance in this game. Despite that, the Royals went into the first break three points down as West Coast put on three late goals to finish the quarter (2.3 – 15) to (3.0 – 18). East Perth’s game style looked good, and they were certainly disappointed to be down at quarter time.

East Perth took a little bit to get back into the game in the second quarter. West Coast scored a goal inside the opening minute of the quarter before Tom Medhat responded. After those early goals, the game was a contested battle for a while before the Royals broke through.

East Perth was then able to score four goals in quick succession, open a 22-point lead heading into halftime (7.4 – 46) to (4.0 – 24). A strong team effort in the first half saw the Royals leading all key stats at the main break. Lots of players were racking up plenty of possessions with Christian Ameduri (16) and Stan Wright (15) leading the way.

The Royals continued their strong form heading into the second half. East Perth’s work rate was impressive as they ran hard right across the ground to create plenty of opportunities for their team. West Coast provided some tough competition throughout the quarter, but the Royals were able to capitalise on their chances in the third term.

Unlike the first quarter, East Perth successfully converted their chances at goal, having nine scoring shots from 13 inside 50s in the third quarter. This opened a nice lead for the Royals heading into the final term (12.8 – 80) to (7.3 – 45).

The last quarter started, and East Perth looked to run over the top of their opponents. The Royals had a chance to assert some dominance in the game and took that opportunity with both hands. After finishing the third quarter strong, East Perth carried that momentum into the last, kicking six goals to two to finish the game in a commanding position. The siren sounded, and the Royals had secured a nice ten-goal win in another fantastic performance for the team in season 2025 (18.10 – 118) to (9.4 – 58).

A really strong team performance right across the ground saw East Perth reap the rewards of a big win in this game. The performance was led by captain Hamish Brayshaw, who continued his excellent run of form for the season (25 disposals, seven inside 50s, two goals). Fellow co-captain Christian Ameduri also put together one of his most complete performances for the season (26 disposals, 13 tackles, one goal). Riley Saunders did a great job down back also, locking up West Coast small forwards whilst collecting plenty of disposals (21). Tom Medhat (17 disposals, ten marks, one goal), Will Cassidy (12 disposals, five marks, three goals) and Scott Jones (nine disposals, four tackles, 47 hitouts) were also among some of the best on ground.

East Perth remain in top spot on the ladder with a healthy percentage (141%). Heading into a WAFL bye this week, the Royals can head into the break knowing that they are serious contenders for success in season 2025. The rest is well deserved for the team, and they will be back in action the following May 24th against East Fremantle back at Sullivan Logistics Stadium. Go Royals!