WAFL grand final: East Fremantle snap 25-year premiership drought with commanding win over Peel Thunder

The Sharks are the 2023 WAFL premiers, overcoming Peel Thunder by 39 points in a result (12.13 - 85 to 6.10 - 46) that was determined early enough for the enormity of their achievement to sink in by the time the final siren confirmed it.

East Fremantle has been the best side all year. They had won 10 consecutive games leading into Sunday’s decider at Optus Stadium. And 120 minutes of relentless and powerful grand final football put the finishing touches on a near-faultless season.

Without a home for the entire season, the Sharks have been WAFL nomads. They’ve trained on upwards of nine different venues and played on nearly as many. But it hasn’t shaken East Fremantle’s spirit.

They’ve suffered their share of adversity. East Fremantle could’ve easily submitted when it was revealed it was being investigated for salary cap inconsistencies, that news coming in the first week of finals. The Sharks responded with a win over Peel in their semi-final, booking the first spot in the decider. Then in their third-last training session of the season, East Fremantle lost mercurial spearhead Jono Marsh to an abductor injury.

It was then fitting that brother Harry kicked the opening goal of the grand final. The rest is history.

Bill Monaghan is a premiership coach, cementing his legacy as one of the WAFL’s most regarded mentors just a few years after the club asked questions of his tenure.

Matthew Jupp is a premiership captain, sticking with the club in its darkest times and coming out the other side as one of the WAFL’s best key defenders.

East Fremantle is the first club to win both WAFL and WAFLW premierships in the same season, the Sharks’ men doing what the women did in July. And the Sharks are premiers for the 30th time with only Port Adelaide boasting a better state-league record.

Even up against the might of Peel, bolstered by the presence of 11 Fremantle listed players, East Fremantle had all the answers.

East Fremantle’s midfield set the tone. The Sharks smashed Peel’s primer movers and left the Thunder little room to strike. Milan Murdock (27 disposals, six tackles, seven inside 50s), Tom Joyce (30 disposals, four marks, four inside 50s) and Fraser Turner (37 disposals, seven marks) combined for 94 disposals between them.

Murdock won the Simpson medal. And the Sharks midfielders comfortably won the contest.

Their forwards shone. A multi-pronged attack, even sans Marsh, was electric. The Sharks had 10 individual goal kickers. Josh Schoenfeld, once a prolific midfielder, kicked two goals and nullified the impact of Nathan Wilson. Ben McGuire set the crowd alight with two skilful snaps, also handing off one to his older brother Reuben. And Hugh Dixon played an important role as a support ruck, countering Peel’s twin talls Liam Reidy and Riley Smith.

And East Fremantle’s backline held firm, led by Jupp and veteran Cameron Eardley (25 disposals, nine marks) who repelled everything.

That’s how you snap a drought. And you can’t help but feel that East Fremantle might have just started a dynasty.