WAFL
SOUTH Fremantle remains in pole position on the WAFL table following another strong display over Perth at Lathlain Park on Saturday.
The Bulldogs were dominant in their return to action following their round 7 bye, easing to a sixth win of the season, 22.14 (146) to 13.8 (86).
Get in front of tomorrow's news for FREE
Journalism for the curious Australian across politics, business, culture and opinion.
READ NOWBlaine Johnson kicked five goals and Ben Saunders four, with running machine Timothy Kelly gathering 28 disposals to go with three majors.
Haiden Schloithe led the Bulldogs for disposals with 31.
Perth’s Nelson Ansey and Gordon Narrier kicked three goals each.
Michael Sinclair tallied a game-high 33 disposals.
South Fremantle’s win has set the scene for a blockbuster clash with Subiaco at Leederville Oval this Saturday.
The Lions are second on the WAFL table only on percentage.
Five goals to Brock O’Brien failed to get East Fremantle over the line on Saturday, with the Sharks falling to West Perth by 34 points.
The winless Sharks chipped away all day at East Fremantle Oval, but were ultimately beaten 19.18 (132) to 15.8 (98).
O’Brien’s five majors were complemented by Matthew Watson’s three.
George Hampson gathered 36 disposals and tallied eight inside 50s, while Jonathon Marsh and Cameron Eardley also had plenty of the ball.
For the Falcons, Tyler Keitel kicked four goals.
Michael Lourey, Corey Chalmers and Andrew Strijk kicked three each.
Trent Manzone gathered a team-high 32 disposals to go with his one goal.
The Sharks will be chasing their first win of the season when they host fellow strugglers East Perth at East Fremantle Oval on Saturday.
SBL
COCKBURN’S two SBL sides are entrenched in a mid-table logjam after eight rounds of SBL action.
James Padgett scored 32 points and tallied 15 rebounds as Lakeside recorded an impressive 91-84 victory over top four side Geraldton at Active West Stadium on Saturday night.
The Lightning led by 24 points at the final change, but had to hold on as the hosts charged home with a 26-9 last quarter.
Cockburn could not make it a clean sweep for our local men’s teams, losing its two round 8 fixtures.
The Cougars went down to Willetton in a double-overtime thriller at Wally Hagan Stadium on Saturday night.
Cougar import Jalen Billups was on fire with 40 points while sharpshooter Gavin Field found form with 32.
But Ray Turner scored 43 points to lead the Tigers to a stirring win that kept them in the hunt for top spot on the table.
The Cougars backed up on Sunday, falling this time to the struggling Goldfields 99-96.
In the women’s division Cockburn continues to struggle.
The Cougars were beaten 82-67 by Willetton at home on Saturday, meaning they have just one win from nine starts.
Lakeside’s women’s side had a bye.
NPL WA
COCKBURN City’s strong start to the NPL WA competition is faltering after another loss on the weekend.
Perth Soccer Club proved too strong in the round 12 matchup, securing a 3-1 win that could have looked a lot worse had Cockburn’s Aden Da Luz not scored a consolation goal in the 84th minute.
After only losing one game in its first six, Cockburn has not won a game since round 8.
Coach Scott Miller said poor defence was to blame for the defeat.
“It’s back to the drawing board for us so hopefully we can learn from this game and turn things around against Glory next week,” he said.
Cockburn hosts Perth Glory from 3pm on May 13 at Dalmatinac Park.
HOCKEY
BOTH of Fremantle Hockey Club’s premier teams recorded heartbreaking losses to cross-town rivals Melville yesterday.
Fremantle’s men were unable to catch up to Melville all game, a 2-1 deficit at half time extending to a 3-2 loss for just their third defeat from eight games.
The Fremantle women suffered another big loss, going down 7-0 to remain winless after four rounds.
Fremantle’s men have a short turnaround for the next game, taking on Hale from 7.15pm May 9 at Hale Turf, while the women play WASPS from 2pm May 13 at the Perth Hockey Stadium.