IN the first week of the Optus WAFL League Finals Series, Claremont advanced through to the Grand Final after defeating South Fremantle by 47 points, while West Perth knocked Perth out of the finals race after beating the Demons by 11 points. Read below to catch up on all the results, and see who stood out in Week One of the Optus WAFL League Finals Series.

South Fremantle 3.6 (24) def. by Claremont 10.11 (71) Claremont has advanced through to its first WAFL League Grand Final since 2012, after defeating South Fremantle by 47 points at Fremantle Community Bank Oval. Former West Coast player Alec Waterman starred for Claremont with 17 possessions, six inside 50s, four marks and four goals. Jye Bolton (27 possessions, one goal), Declan Mountford (22 possessions, 15 tackles, seven inside 50s), Callan England (17 possessions, three inside 50s), Jared Hardisty (15 possessions, five inside 50s), Kane Mitchell (12 possessions, 10 tackles) and Alexander Manuel (10 possessions, five tackles, three goals) all excelled for the Tigers. For South Fremantle, budding star Chad Pearson was excellent with 21 possessions, two marks, two tackles and two inside 50s. Jason Maskos (18 possessions, four tackles), Blayne Wilson (16 possessions, four marks), Caleb Datson (15 possessions, one goal), Dylan Main (15 possessions, two marks, two tackles), Haiden Schloithe (15 possessions, one goal), and Steven Verrier (15 possessions, seven tackles) competed strongly for the Bulldogs, who will now lean on their second chance as minor premiers.

West Perth 7.6 (48) def. Perth 5.7 (37) Perth’s finals run came to an abrupt end, after being beaten by West Perth to the tune of 11 points at Provident Financial Oval. Luke Meadows was inspirational for West Perth, finishing with 24 possessions, four tackles, three inside 50s and a goal. Trent Manzone (26 possessions, four inside 50s), Shane Nelson (23 possessions, eight tackles, seven inside 50s), Blake Wilhelm (23 possessions, four tackles), Aaron Black (18 possessions, one goal), Zac Guadagnin (18 possessions, eight tackles), Tyler Keitel (11 possessions, two goals) and Mitchell Peirce (10 possessions, two goals) were prolific for the Falcons. For Perth, former Fremantle player Brady Grey fought hard to finish with 24 possessions, six tackles and five inside 50s. Matthew Taylor (18 possessions, four marks), Fraser McInnes (16 possessions, seven inside 50s, six tackles, five marks), Andrew Fisher (15 possessions, five marks, four tackles), Michael Sinclair (15 possessions, one goal), Christian Eyres (14 possessions, 23 hit-outs) and Brant Colledge (14 possessions, 19 tackles) were the Demons’ prominent players.

Featured Image: Claremont players celebrate their Grand Final berth | Source: (Retrieved from) @WAFLOfficial via Twitter