PEEL Thunder coach Cam Shepherd praised his side for adapting to the weather conditions during their nail-biting three-point win over West Perth.
Both sides battled a strong headwind throughout the game, which resulted in both sides dominating two quartes apiece on the scoreboard.
Shepherd said he was happy his team used the wind to their advantage when given the chance and claimed a much-needed victory.
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READ NOW“There were 22 goals kicked and 16 were scored at one end, it was a matter of taking advantage of the conditions,” he said.
“West Perth were sitting third, we hadn’t beaten anyone above us, so it was a good win.
“The last 5 minutes we could’ve had again, I was really pleased with 95 per cent of the game, but thought we could have closed it out better.”
Shepherd said it was a strong team performance, with numerous players stepping up and showing leadership.
Danyle Pearce (31 disposals), Ethan Hughes (28 disposals and 11 marks) and Mitchell Crowden (27 disposals, 11 tackles and five marks) all showed their talent, with numerous others recording strong performances as well.
However, Shepherd reserved special praise for Ben Howlett who was close to best-on-ground with 33 disposals, 13 tackles, four inside 50s and two goals.
“He set the tone early and kicked first two goals of the game, he’s in a rich vein of form and his strong tackling set the tone,” he said.
Shepherd admitted they faced an uphill battle next week against a high-flying South Fremantle side, as injuries at AFL level would filter down.
“We’ve copped a few injuries with Griffin Logue and Alex Pearce, that’ll have an effect, so we’ve got to see who we get back,” he said.
“South Fremantle would’ve had a bad loss to Perth and they’ll be keen to bounce back, it’ll be a hard game.”
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