WAFL RD 5 PREVIEW

RD 5 WAFL PREVIEW | v SUBIACO

South Fremantle got back to winning on Sunday and now will look to back that up and make it five victories in-a-row against Subiaco at Sullivan Logistics Stadium on Saturday.

After their winning streak in the WAFL was snapped at 17 the previous week by Claremont, South Fremantle hit back on Sunday beating West Perth by 30 points at Joondalup’s HIF Health Insurance Oval.

The Bulldogs now look to start building on that momentum again when taking on Subiaco this Saturday at Leederville’s Sullivan Logistics Stadium with the game getting underway at 4:10pm.

Having had a tough run against Subiaco for a long time including losing the grand finals of 2019 and 2021, the Bulldogs have turned things around over the past couple of years against the Lions.

South Fremantle have now won the last four games against Subiaco by an average of 53.8 points which included the two victories in 2025 by a combined 164 points.

With the injury to Simpson Medalist Hamish Free, 20-year-old Aidan Harvey has been thrown the No. 1 ruck role with the Bulldogs and after doing an impressive job last week against West Perth, he’s looking forward to the challenge this Saturday against Subiaco.

“At first it was a bit daunting and Hammer’s a formidable force in the ruck and we’ve got some big shoes to fill, but I love to rise to a challenge and to have Whitey and coaches put the trust in me to step up and try to fill his role was an honour honestly,” Harvey told The Kennel on 91.3 SportFM.

“I’ve noticed the new ruckman Subiaco have got, the young fella, he’s come out of the gates pretty well and they’ve got a few good recruits, and to be honest with my lack of experience I’m still learning about the opposition sides.

“But I’ll just go out there and do the best I can and try to go out there and keep playing like I did last week.”

South Fremantle have made just the one change to the team that beat West Perth on Sunday at Joondalup with West Love into the side to make his Bulldogs debut and to provide support to Harvey in the ruck in the absence of Free.

The unlucky player to go out of the team for the reigning premiers is Sam Otto coming off that win against the Falcons.

Subiaco have made two changes to the team that beat Peel Thunder by a point on Anzac Day with the Lions losing captain Greg Clark to suspension with Noah Hibbins-Hargreave going out as well.

Coming into the team for Subiaco to take on South Fremantle are Richard Bartlett and Jordan Snadden.

The Colts clash gets things underway at Sullivan Logistics Stadium on Saturday morning at 10:55am with the Bulldogs taking on the Lions.

Coming into the Round 5 match up and South Fremantle remain the only team in the Colts yet to lose a game in 2026 having won their opening four matches to sit a game and percentage clear on top of the ladder.

Subiaco, meanwhile, have won just one of their first three matches ahead of hosting the undefeated Bulldogs on Saturday.

South Fremantle continued their winning ways back on Sunday evening with a thumping 69-point win at Joondalup against West Perth while Subiaco also won last Friday night at home to Peel Thunder by 45 points.

So both teams bring impressive form into their match up on Saturday that will get the day’s action at Leederville underway.

That leads into the Reserves clash at Sullivan Logistics Stadium with both teams so far having one win on the board this season.

The Bulldogs sit on a 1-3 record on the back of a 34-point loss to West Perth at Joondalup on Sunday with their lone victory coming back in Round 2 at home to Perth when they won by 51 points.

The Lions are 1-2 on the season in the Reserves and are fresh off a 25-point loss at home to Peel Thunder on Anzac Day with their win for 2026 so far coming against East Fremantle by 83 points back in Round 2.