Peel Thunder lose to Subiaco

PEEL Thunder fell by 41 points to Subiaco on Sunday afternoon at David Grays Arena.

After the Thunder kicked the first goal of the match off the boot of Hayden Ballantyne, the Lions responded by piling on nine unanswered goals to half-time to kick the Thunder out of the contest, romping their way to a 15.9 (99) to 8.10 (58) win.

Peel found themselves one step behind the play for most of the afternoon, as Subiaco controlled the ball for the majority of the contest with precision kicking and hard running, amassing 29 more marks and 10 more tackles than the Thunder.

Speaking after the match, young Peel midfielder Keegan Power said Subiaco’s skill by foot was a key factor in the end result.

“When they have those marks they control the game. We set a goal at the start to limit their marks and we didn’t end up doing it, so it’s something to work on,” he said.

Peel started the game in convincing fashion, not only springing out to an early lead but also going blow for blow with the powerful Lions squad for the first 15 minutes of the game.

Subiaco then went up a gear as they set an intensity that Peel were unable to match to the main break, running up a 47-point half-time lead.

Power said the run of quiet quarters over the past few matches was unfortunate, but Peel was keen to rectify it in the coming rounds.

The Thunder improved in the third quarter as they matched the Lions on the scoreboard. They went goal for goal as Subiaco’s lead remained unchanged heading into the final term when Peel pushed back against the Lions’ pressure, kicking three of the last five goals to run out the game strongly. Led by former skipper Gerard Ugle and former Essendon player Jackson Merrett, the two pushed the young side hard to ensure Peel did not go down without a fight.

Power said their leadership on the field for the side was an important part of the squad’s development, especially his own.

“Yeah they’re massive, especially for the young boys,” he said.

“They’ve taken me under their wing and helped me out a lot.”

The Thunder have a bye next week before facing South Fremantle on Saturday, June 15, at David Grays Arena.

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