The Birth Of The Royals

East Perth played their first game on May 12, 1906 against North Fremantle at the North Fremantle Oval.

The Team 
Backs     Rann       Smith          Wilkins
H/Back: Andrews  A.J Hesford W Hesford 
Centre:  Oliver       Wallish        Biglands
H/Fwd:   Lindsay     Toll              Hogan
Fwd:       McKinnon Sinclair Sherwood
Followers: Woolard (Capt) Jim Hesford  Loughridge

The game attracted a fairly large gathering of supporters.

In a low scoring first quarter the East Perth backline stood firm and the only goal for the quarter and the first ever goal for East Perth was scored by Jim Hesford.
The second quarter progressed with East Perth offering  stubborn resistance and the kicking of the local forwards was poor. McKinnon goaled and shortly before the long break Sherwood added another goal for East Perth.
The third quarter saw North Fremantle playing their best football and they kept East Perth on the defensive for most of the quarter.
In the final quarter the play was of a very even character. Each side played with great dash and determination. North's, were unable to make up the deficit. Toll for East Perth notched their fourth goal, while North Fremantle only succeeded in registering two behinds.

Score: East Perth 1-2  3-3  3-8  4-8 (32)   
           North Fremantle 0-3  0-5   1-8  1-10 (16)
Goals: Jim Hesford, McKinnon, Sherwood, Toll
Best Players: Woolard was consistently brilliant and played, perhaps the best game on the ground. The Hesford brothers were also prominent while McKinnon, Toll, Loughridge and Sherwood played well.

The West Australian commented as follows. By their well deserved victory East Perth fully justified their admittance into the senior ranks. They played with excellent combination throughout the game and were their opponents equals in all phases of the game. Although it was apparent that North Fremantle were not nearly as strong as in previous years, they were nevertheless, a fair combination.