South Bunbury, Harvey-Brunswick-Leschenault make statement wins in title fight

A 10-goal haul by South Bunbury’s Kade Wallrodt fired his team to a 25.21 (171) to 2.6 (18) thrashing of Dunsborough at Hands Oval on Saturday. The home team got off to a fast start, scoring six unanswered goals and four points in the first term and going into the main break 14.8 (92) to 0.1 (1). While Wallrodt was the star in front of the posts, Blaine Johnson also contributed with four goals while Mitchell Bain and Tyson Lane bagged three each. To make the win even sweeter, the match marked the 150-game milestone for South Bunbury’s Shaun Crane. The win shores up South Bunbury’s place atop the SWFL men’s ladder — unbeaten and on 52 points. They are 12 points clear of Bunbury and HBL with six rounds still to play. South Bunbury weren’t the only team to secure a triple-digit win at the weekend, with Harvey-Brunswick-Leschenault running riot over the Harvey Bulls to claim the Sam Strano Cup 27.13 (175) to 1.3 (9) at Brunswick Oval on Saturday. The final scoreline was the result of an utterly dominant four quarters of football beginning with an 11.3 (69) to 1.0 (6) opening term. Following the Lions’ 11-goal first quarter — in which Harvey Bulls scored their opening major — the hosts barely took their foot off the gas, bagging another six goals before half-time. The pain only continued for the Bulls who couldn’t add to their score until the late stages of the third quarter with a behind and a further two minor scores in the fourth. In that time, Harvey-Brunswick-Leschenault had ballooned their lead to more than 150 points and despite a comparatively quiet 23-point fourth quarter, posted the biggest individual score of the SWFL men’s season so far. There were 12 goal kickers for the victors, eight of which bagged more than one. Both Brendan Tingey and Blake Offer scored four while Billy Boucher, Jacoby Parfitt and Zac Piper put through three majors each. The result was not only the biggest individual score of the season — surpassing Bunbury’s 174 against Eaton in round six — it was also the biggest winning margin and the equal most goals by one side in a game. The win completes a dominant double for Harvey-Brunswick-Leschenault over their cross-shire rivals this year after beating the Bulls in round one by 104 points. The Lions have now won four games on the trot to sit third on the ladder while the Bulls slumped to their fourth loss in a row by at least 90 points. On Sunday, Augusta Maragaret River took home the four points over Donnybrook 4.4 (28) to 3.7 (25) in Boyanup for the Chris Sheehan memorial game. The match was dedicated to Sheehan, a former Dons skipper who died suddenly in 2015. It was the Hawks who scored the only goal of the first quarter and took a 3.3 (21) to 0.5 (5) lead at half-time. The Hawks bagged one second-half goal and a point from there on, while Donnybrook put just three majors and two points through to finish three points behind. At Glen Huon Reserve, Eaton got their second win of the season over the Collie Eagles, 11.10 (76) to 6.7 (43). The bottom of the table clash proved the best opportunity for the Boomers to secure a win, something they hadn’t done since the two sides met in round one. Eaton now sit 10th on the ladder on eight points while Collie sit on the bottom with just four.