Round 6 Preview | v Subiaco

SOUTH Fremantle has the chance to make a real statement that it is the real deal this WAFL season taking on Subiaco on Saturday afternoon at Leederville Oval.

South Fremantle has started the new season in tremendous fashion winning four of the first five games of the season leading into Sunday’s WAFL State Game against the SANFL at Optus Stadium.

Haiden Schloithe ended up being South Fremantle’s only representative in that seven-point loss to South Australia meaning the majority of the Bulldogs group are now fresh and raring to go against the Lions.

Subiaco might not have lost a game since the 2017 Grand Final, but South Fremantle comes into Saturday’s clash full of confidence and with the added boost of the presence of reigning WJ Hughes Medal winner Marlion Pickett for the first time in 2019.

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Then at Leederville Oval, Subiaco puts its 25-game winning streak on the line against a South Fremantle who has restocked over summer and started 2019 impressively winning four of its opening five matches.

With Subiaco coming into the game having won all five its matches in 2019 and having still not lost since the 2017 Grand Final and then South Fremantle coming off playing in the past three preliminary finals, it shapes as a fascinating contest.

The two teams have met in each of the past three WAFL finals series, with Subiaco beating South Fremantle in the second semi-final in 2016, preliminary final in 2017 and second semi-final in 2018.

The Lions have won their past five games over the Bulldogs, and 11 of the past 12 with South Fremantle’s last win against Subiaco coming in Round 1, 2017 with an impressive 39-point win to open the season at Fremantle Community Bank Oval.

But that sort of record is similar to what Subiaco has against all opponents in recent years, but the Bulldogs have good reason to expect to take it right up to the Lions given the way they’ve started the season.

Subiaco comes into the game with a perfect 5-0 record and is coming off a hard fought 18-point win against Swan Districts where they had to kick the only five goals of the last quarter to stretch their winning run to 25.

South Fremantle won big two weeks ago beating West Coast by 59 points on the back of a 77-point thumping of East Fremantle. The Bulldogs’ only loss was by three points to Perth in Round 2 so they could easily be 5-0 like Subiaco coming into Saturday’s clash at Leederville Oval.

From the Subiaco team that beat Swan Districts a fortnight ago, Jacob Miller, Drew Rohde, Harry Marsh and Ryan Borchet come into the line-up while Kaidyn Fullgrabe goes out.

South Fremantle was tremendous the previous two weeks and now looks set to regain reigning fairest and best winner Marlion Pickett for the first time in 2019 following a nasty finger injury.

Zac De San Miguel and Caleb Datson also come into the South Fremantle squad with nobody out at this stage.

South Fremantle defender Blayne Wilson will also be playing his 150th WAFL game on Saturday and he’d love nothing more than to celebrate with the Bulldogs snapping the winning streak of Subiaco.

“I think we are cherry ripe that if we were going to knock them off, then I think this is the week to do it,” Wilson said.

“We are really confident going into it. We probably played our best game two weeks ago now before the bye with our best four-quarter effort barring 10 minutes against West Coast.

“I think the boys are really hungry too. Obviously Subiaco haven’t lost for a couple of years and we are really hungry to knock them off and really try to get the job done.

“If we can get it done it would be the cherry on top so hopefully we can just play our way, and play to our strengths and the scoreboard will take care of itself. But Subi are still a powerhouse obviously. But if we can get the job done it will be great.”

ROUND 6
SOUTH FREMANTLE v SUBIACO – LEEDERVILLE OVAL, SATURDAY 2.15PM

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