The top 4 is unchanged and it is Doubleview who will host the first day off the finals before heading to Bassendean for the grand final. It was only 2 years ago when we had the exact same top 4 and should once again be another exciting finals series. Sadly for Nth beach and newcomers Joondalup they will be heading back to white next season. Before we get into the results, a break down of analysis for the year as seen through the eyes of the Lord.
1st Doubleview - Very strong back half from the View with just the one loss and claiming top spot. The return of john Slavich has paid dividends and with the experience they have I believe are looking good to go on and win the flag.
2nd Sth Perth – The Millers have had an exceptional season considering the players they lost and players they had out during the year, they only missed top spot by a point but have once again put themselves in a great position to make the big dance on Sunday.
3rd Cambridge – Another strong season for the Knights who this year finished in 3rd spot. They were only 3 points off top spot and were 1 of 2 clubs that missed out of 2 home fixtures due to getting heated off. They were against 2 other teams that appear in the finals, it would have been interesting to see how it would of panned out had they of got them played. Very strong side here would not surprise me to see them playing on Sunday.
4th Manning – The Eagles once again flying home to take the last spot in the finals as they look to make it 3 in a row. They’ve done it before coming from 4th spot and will be confident in doing it again. A lot of players have been in and out but all are available for the finals. Its been 20 years since a club won 3 in a row, lets see if they can do it.
5th Mt Lawley – The Mounters would be disappointed to be there abouts all year and to just miss out in the end but in all a very good season for the club considering they just survived relegation last year. They recruited well and I think they will be even stronger next year.
6th Osborne park – Unusual not to see the Saints in the business end but they were on the wrong side of a couple of close ones. Some good young players coming through the club and if they keep all their newcomers I think we will see them back in finals contention next year.
7th Bassendean – After such a strong start from the Lions then all of a sudden the wheels fell off and they forgot how to win. They did come back up form white so its always hard to survive that first year up to which they did and did have some very good wins against good sides. Gain another player or 2 and the club will bounce back for next season.
8th Sorrento – Ill be honest I thought they were goneski but have just managed to survive by winning their last game. Not sure what has happened, but they are a much better side than this, lets see what happens next year.
9th Joondalup – Although they didn’t survive I think the Dolphins did very well in their first year up in premier. They too also missed out on 2 home fixtures, I think they would of hung on had they of got those played.
10th Nth Beach – Was always going to be tough for these guys to hang on with the players that they lost but they lasted 4 years in the comp since coming up from white and I don’t think it will be long before we see them again.
Mt Lawley 92 (8) vs Bassendean 62 (0)
(Cameron Green 19 - Simon Alden 18) (Corey Bessant 24 - Ruairi Kenyon 17) (Daniel Trewhella 31 - Wayne Neilson 11) (Darren Rowland 18 - David Rhodes 16)
Mt Lawley finishing off their season getting all 8 points at home. Unfortunately for them the miracle results they needed didn’t happen but a very good year none the less for the club. The Lions wil be glad the season is over after suffering their 9th straight loss but its their first year back in the comp and will go again next year.
Cambridge 76 (7) vs Doubleview 67 (1)
(Blake Nairn 17 - Ryan Moyle 22) (Cameron Harris 19 - Charlie Slavich 16) (Clive Adams 18 - Kyle McIlroy 13) (Pieter Harris 22 - Anthony Williams 16)
The Knights finishing off the season with a 9 shot win over Doubleview. All rinks were pretty close but the 7 points keeps Cambridge in 3rd spot and now head into the finals to take on Manning. The lone point for the visitors and who knew just how important that win would be, but it was enough to keep Doubleview in top spot and get a home final next week. Fair effort to hold on for the win considering I do believe from a very subtle social media post they dropped an 8 during the encounter.
Manning 104 (8) vs North Beach 54 (0)
(Cody Packer 31 - Richard Aitken 12) (Shane Knott 26 - Mark Douthie 14) (Thomas Mitchell 27 - Gavin Crosthwaite 12) (William Hyatt 20 - Joe McGinlay 16)
Manning storming into the finals with a big 50 shot win over Nth Beach. Manning now would be hoping for history to repeat itself from 2 years when Doubleview last held the finals. Will be a cracker of a first game when they take on Cambridge. For Nth beach I thought they may of tried to stack a couple of rinks to maybe give themselves a chance of hanging on, but they did last 4 seasons in premier and will be very strong in white next year.
Osborne Park 85 (7) vs South Perth 75 (1)
(Jack East 21 - Scott Walker 20) (John Goddard 18 - Justin Opie 13) (Sean Mawdsley 23 - Ross Bresland 24) (Segan Pasalich 23 - Glenn Pauling 18)
Osborne finishing off their season with a 10 shot win over the Millers. Segan Pasalich once again getting a win and I think he will be a walk up start to the skippers role next year. For the Millers they have just fallen short of getting a home final with Scotty Walker going down by 1 to Jack East. They do get 2 cracks though to make the grand final and did beat Doubleview a couple of years ago at their place. It should be another great encounter.
Joondalup 77 (2.5) vs Sorrento 78 (5.5)
(Ben Leggett 25 - Paul Knight 18) (Chris Leggett 17 - Rhett Butler 16) (Patrick Daley 19 - Ross Cunningham 19) (Wes Neilson 16 - Bruce Eagles 25)
Sorrento have hung onto to premier with a 1 shot win against the Dolphins. It was the fine wine Bruce Eagles rink that did the damage with a 9 shot win over Wes Neilson. The Dolphins would be disappointed but did play very well during the year, they now head back to white next season hoping to get back up in the near future.
