DEFENDING Under-16 Division 1 champions South Australia got their 2019 campaign off to an ideal start, bettering their Western counterparts by 29 points at Subiaco Oval in a game full of momentum swings.

The tri-colours burst out of the blocks early with consecutive goals to Morgan Ferres, Zyton Santillo, and Cooper Murley helping them to an ominous three-goal break. Their lead was soon to be cut though, as the home side hit back through forward targets Luke Taylor and Jacob van Rooyen to remain within striking distance. The ebbs and flows continued on into the second term, with SA ending the beneficiary of a high-scoring stanza of play – booting six goals to WA’s three to build a 26-point half-time margin. Three quick unanswered goals in the final four minutes of the term compounded the difference, with Jay Watson, skipper Jason Horne, and diminutive forward jet Isaiah Dudley all finding the big sticks late on.

With a downpour of rain continuing on from the half time interval, SA looked primed to hang onto the lead they had established, but WA simply would not go away. A deadlocked third term saw the spoils shared and margin relatively unchanged heading into the fourth quarter, with Dudley and WA’s Taylor each doubling up on their respective goal tallies. With the rain seeming to clear but the ball still wet, the home side made a charge early in the final stanza with another string of three goals – this time through Zach Fliener, Matthew Johnson, and Ethan Regan. Despite the lead being cut to just nine points and the run of play with WA, the visitors’ class shone through the dreariness as they finished strong with three goals of their own to seal a comfortable victory in the end, with a Ferres goal on the siren sealing the deal.

Dudley and Ferres were the stars inside 50 for the winners with four goals apiece, as the former provided intense ground ball threat when rotating forward through the midfield, and the latter more of an aerial option. Dudley’s teammates in last year’s Under 16 squad – Horne and Matthew Roberts – were fantastic through midfield, winning their fair share of contested ball and also featuring forward of centre. Santillo was another to impress with his run and carry from the wing, with Lachlan Thomas and Harry Tunkin reliable outlets down back.

For WA, late squad inclusion Blake Morris was simply outstanding down back – marking just about everything that came his way, especially during a dryer first half. Fliener was another to pop up in the defensive half, donning his helmet and carrying the ball forward to good effect. The likes of Lochlan Paton, Max Chipper, and Mitchell Brown all accumulated well across the game in the Black Swans’ midfield rotation, while Lawson Humphries and Richard Bartlett were dangerous links into the forward 50. Johnson and Taylor were the only multiple goal kickers in an even spread, with van Rooyen a key contributor to also find the goals and Kade Dittmar impressive in all areas of the ground.

With the carnival headed to Queensland for Rounds 2 and 3, next on the agenda for South Australia is a meeting with fellow Round 1 winners, Vic Metro. Meanhwile, Western Australia is set to face Metro’s weekend opponent, Vic Country.

WESTERN AUSTRALIA 2.2 | 5.3 | 6.5 | 9.5 (59)
SOUTH AUSTRALIA 3.4 | 9.5 | 10.8 | 13.10 (88)

GOALS:
WA: L. Taylor 2, M. Johnson 2, J. van Rooyen, L. Humphries, R. Farmer, Z. Fliener, E. Regan.
SA: I. Dudley 4, M. Ferres 4, C. Murley, Z. Santillo, J. Horne, J. Watson, H. McInnes.