2001 WAFL season

• Peel, already fighting for its very existence, defeat Swans for the first time in a tough, scrappy match and consequently are in the top four for the first time in their short history.[4]
• South Fremantle, after a very disappointing 2000, stun the Royals to back up outstanding form in the pre-season ‘Governor’s Challenge’, where they won all four matches.[5]
• New captain Paul Maher sets the standard for a Perth team with ten new faces, leading them to an upset win over high-flyers Subiaco, whose tall forwards Smith, Ambrose and Donnelly do not kick a single goal between them.[6]

New skipper Marshall Stockden, replacing the retired Stephen Bilcich, gives the Sharks a splendid comeback win with a goal from a bouncing shot almost on the siren.[8]

• Sixteen-year-old Aboriginal forward Daniel Wells kicks 4.1 and gives two other goals away to give Peel a thrilling win after Perth stormed back in the third quarter.[9]
• A chant of “Eagles”^[a] by West Perth supporters backfires as Ryan Turnbull drives East Perth to a comfortable rebound from their opening debacle after a very even three quarters.[10]

• Haaron Bokhari and Paul Medhurst kick ten between them as a powerful Tiger half-back line[11] holds East Perth to their lowest score against Claremont.[12]

• Injury-plagued Travis Gaspar shows the skills of older brother Darren as South Fremantle decimate Perth in a nine-goal first quarter romp before Perth’s “flooding” tactics in defence cause the game to deteriorate as Daniel Schell kicks 5.8 (38) – mostly from easy shots.[13]
• Eighteen-year-old Quentin Lynch, on his WAFL debut, keeps West Perth ahead of the winless Swans, who fade out in the last quarter of what was previously a high-quality match.[14]

• Minus key 2000 forwards Troy Wilson and Ashley Hutchinson, East Perth achieve a confidence-building victory over a persistent East Fremantle via consistent experimentation up forward.[15]
• Dale Kickett, in his first match for Claremont since the 1993 Grand Final^[b], forms part of a rock-solid Tiger defence that easily wins the battle of the WAFL heavyweights.[16]
• Perth, against a Falcon side weakened by the loss of Brendon Fewster, move to third as their enthusiasm offsets lack of experience and “flooding” tactics make goals almost impossible to get.[17]

• West Perth pile on six unanswered goals in ten minutes in very wet weather,[19] but after umpire Mark Fussell does not allow a mark to Quinten Lynch on the siren the match becomes only the third draw since the 1989 First semi-final, and the first in 328 games since Round 16, 1997.[20][21] As of 2014 this remains Subiaco’s last drawn match.
• East Perth, overwhelming a weakened Demon attack and having their own targets in Dean Buszan and Kane Marsh, end a disjointed start to 2001 and show premiership form for the first time.[22]
• With Andrew Embley showing his readiness for an AFL recall, Swan Districts come back for their first win after being behind all day.[23]
• Peel kick the lowest score against South Fremantle since Perth kicked 1.7 (13) in 1952.[24]

• Peel Thunder gain a satisfying victory over East Fremantle – the club most opposed to the extension of their licence – due to the Sharks’ lack of pace, and rise to fifth despite their preceding thrashing.[25]
• Perth are the first WANFL/WAFL/WASFL/Westar Rules team goalless at three-quarter time since East Fremantle, also at Lathlain Park, in Round 15, 1967, but after kicking three of the first four goals in the last quarter are within three points before Claremont kick four in quick succession to stay undefeated.[26]

For the only time to date, the WAFL play a match in the coal-mining town of Collie, in East Perth’s country zone. The game becomes Peel’s first win over an eventual premier club, and continues East Perth’s hoodoo in matches staged in country centres, as former Thunder star Buszan scores 2.7 (19).[28]

• After the turmoil associated with the sacking of Fremantle coach Damian Drum, Daniel Bandy, relegated from the Dockers, controls the ruck and plays in a winning team for the first time in 2001 to push Perth back into the four.[29]
• Dean Buszan’s nine goals gives East Perth a crushing win that shows them still firm premiership hopes, but relegates the Falcons to their worst start since 1992.[30]

• The free-roaming play of David Swan on a wet and muddy Fremantle Oval ensures East Perth completely eclipse the league leaders after half-time.[32]
• The loss of out-of-form ruckman Daniel Bandy after a major collision with Lion Richard Ambrose turns an arm-wrestle into a thrashing as Andrew Wills decimates the Demons.[33]
• Peel Thunder, despite remaining under threats of being axed from the WAFL, record what remains as of 2014 their highest score[34] and greatest winning margin.[35]

• Six goals by Graham Polak on his seventeenth birthday gives 2000 runners-up East Fremantle a third win and leaves West Perth second last and seemingly out of finals contention.[36]
• Out-of-form ex-AFL star Scott Cummings, relegated from the poorly-performing Eagles, is unexpectedly thrashed by Anthony Buselik in his eighth WAFL/Westar Rules match, and Swans fail to reap an expected benefit.[37]

Led by Ryan Turnbull and Devan Perry, East Perth win a thrilling match with two goals direct from clearances in the final minute and remain in touch with top club Claremont.[38]

Troy Wilson, despite playing with three pairs of socks in the boots of Dean Buszan, kicks seven goals to ward off a potential Shark upset.[39]

• A spiteful incident where Subiaco centreman Brad Campbell breaks his jaw fails to rouse the Lions enough to prevent Peel’s sixth win in seven home games, which places the Thunder only half a game behind the fourth-placed Lions.[40]
• A flu epidemic and two byes in three rounds fails to undermine second-placed South Fremantle, who manage to all but end Perth’s finals hopes in the slippery conditions.[41]

West Perth maintain their perfect record against Peel thanks to the return of former big man Brett King, whose presence in the ruck allows Laurie Belotti and Simon Duckworth to solve forward woes created by the loss of Digby Morrell.[42]

West Perth coach Andrew Lockyer has an unexpected success via leaving 1999 Simpson Medallist Christian Kelly on the bench, as his fresh legs give the Falcons a stirring win after having only four goals on the board with ten minutes remaining. Simon Duckworth helps Kelly by kicking three late goals from centre half-forward.[43]

• Subiaco, at full strength for the first time in 2001, jump second-placed South Fremantle to stay ahead of the Thunder and Falcons in fourth. The Bulldogs do not goal until nineteen minutes into the second quarter and are 4.6 (30) when heavy rain starts at three-quarter time.[44]
• East Perth, led by defender Andrew Waller who shuts out Bernard Carney after the latter kicked four goals in the first quarter, score 15.8 (98) to 2.2 (14) after quarter-time when a huge upset by the one-win Swans looked on the agenda.[45]
• Despite East Fremantle recording statistically its fourth most accurate score on record, Peel record as of 2014 their only win at East Fremantle Oval.[46]

• After being a goal behind at half-time, East Perth kick 20.7 (127) to 1.4 (10) in the second half. Their 13.3 (81) in the last quarter is the most in any quarter against Peel.[48] Dean Buszan, who shifted from Peel to East Perth under the host club agreement, kicked nine goals.
• West Perth effective seal the four with three rounds remaining by kicking only 0.6 (6) from nine shots with the wind in the last quarter.[49]
• Swan Districts, with only one win, lead all day to record a shock upset over Claremont in John Todd’s seven hundredth match as coach, as rejuvenated forward Scott Cummings and Craig DeCorsey provide targets previously missing and kick eight of their twelve majors.[50]

• Ex-Lions Matt Balchin and Paul Ridley allow the Royals to overcome the late withdrawal of Dean Buszan and take second position, Subiaco completely dominate between the midpoints of the third and last quarter but score only one goal and East Perth rebound solidly.[51]
• Brad Wira’s return to form highlights Claremont’s thrashing of a Peel club facing an uncertain future in the WAFL and losing Derek Hall and Daniel Haines very early in the match.[52]
• Andrew Lockyer’s policy of playing star players from the bench comes up another trump as West Perth see Regan Duckworth, Brendan Logan and Paul Stockden to cash in on a tired East Fremantle midfield and keep the Falcons’ finals hopes alive. Stockden, with three last-quarter goals, wards off a Shark surge.[53]

• West Perth rover Glenn Britten makes a remarkable steal from Dean Buszan to knock the ball away and create the winning goal, backed up by a six-goal third quarter and superb defence at the finish that restricts the Royals to two behinds.[55]
• This result ended East Perth’s run of nine straight and left West Perth only percentage behind Subiaco, though with a much tougher final match.
• Despite listing and not playing a completely unfit Travis Gaspar to make him eligible for the WAFL finals, South Fremantle have no trouble with the Sharks, leading 15.6 (96) to 4.4 (28) at half-time.[56]

• East Perth’s dominance of general play finally pays off in the last quarter and the Royals take the double chance, but face the report of veteran David Swan, who was taken to hospital after vomiting blood.[57]
• Despite losing Scott Cummings to a back injury at quarter-time, last-placed Swan Districts crush Peel with the unheralded Ben Piggott booting six goals and Adam Hunter five. The Swans scored 8.5 (53) to 0.0 (0) in the final quarter.[58]

With the Bulldogs severely short of tall players due to injury, coach Peter Sumich moves Rick Mott and veteran Marty Atkins into the ruck – where they are extremely successful and overpower the Lions.[59]

With East Perth’s superb win, Tony Micale becomes the fifth WAFL coach to appear in five consecutive Grand Finals,^[c], and the only one to do so with multiple clubs. Claremont’s troubles began with the loss of key rover Ben Cunningham in the second quarter, after which they were overwhelmed.[61]

Travis Gaspar does a remarkable job of overcoming severe hamstring problems to play a decisive role as a ruckman in the Bulldogs’ victory.[62]

East Perth’s powerful, tough rucks destroy a depleted South Fremantle team, with Turnbull leading the charge a day before his thirtieth birthday.[64]