2009 WAFL Grand Final

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The 2009 West Australian Football League (WAFL) Grand Final was the culmination of the 115th season of the premier Australian rules football league in Western Australia. It was played at Subiaco Oval on 20 September 2009 and won by the South Fremantle Football Club who defeated the Subiaco Football Club by 18 points. [1]

West Australian Football League

The West Australian Football League (WAFL) is an Australian rules football league based in Perth, Western Australia. The WAFL is the third-most popular league in the nation, behind the nationwide Australian Football League (AFL) and South Australian National Football League (SANFL). The league currently consists of nine teams, which play each other in a 24-round season usually lasting from March to September, with the top five teams playing off in a finals series, culminating in a Grand Final. The league also runs reserves and colts (under-19) competitions.

Australian rules football in Western Australia is the most popular sport in the state.

Subiaco Oval is a disused stadium located in Subiaco, a suburb of Perth, Western Australia. Formerly the highest capacity stadium in Western Australia and one of the main stadiums in Australia, seating 43,500 people, the ground was the home of Australian rules football in Western Australia, being the home ground for the West Coast Eagles and Fremantle Football Club, the two Western Australian teams in the Australian Football League (AFL). The ground was also used for occasional West Australian Football League (WAFL) matches, including the competition's yearly grand final. The stadium also hosted Perth Glory games, including two National Soccer League grand finals, international rules matches, rugby union games and rock concerts. It was the home ground for the Western Force between 2006 and 2009.

Contents

Build up

Much curiosity from football fans preceded the contest. South Fremantle had finished on top of the ladder in season 2009, two games clear of Subiaco who had finished in second place. However Subiaco had won the previous three Premierships and this would be their fourth consecutive Grand Final appearance (and their sixth in seven years). Between them the two combatants had won every WAFL Premiership since 2004.

Match summary

Early on South Fremantle had the bulk of the scoring opportunities, however of all these were not executed in effective manner, despite this the Bulldogs held a firm eleven point lead at the end of the first quarter.

Subiaco opened the second term in much better fashion and at one stage even looked like snatching the lead, South Fremantle steadied though to win the quarter and open a three-goal lead by the main break.

Whatever chances the Lions had of getting back into the contest were quickly dashed in the third quarter as South Fremantle ran rampant and opened up a match winning lead by the last change, with a resounding seven goal to two quarter.

The match was effectively over early in the final term, when the Bulldogs opened up a 53-point margin, save for a strong last ten minutes from Subiaco, South Fremantle had controlled virtually the entire match and deservedly went on to claim the flag. Ashton Hams was judged the best player and won the Simpson Medal.

Ashton Kane Hams is an Australian rules footballer who played for the West Coast Eagles in the Australian Football League (AFL). He was recruited from the South Fremantle Football Club in the West Australian Football League (WAFL), and played 39 games for West Coast from 2010 to 2013 as a small forward.

The Simpson Medal is an individual prize awarded for Australian rules football in Western Australia. The medal has been donated by Dr Fred Simpson and family since 1945.

QTHTTQTFinal
South Fremantle5.3(33)8.8(56)15.10(100)17.11(113)
Subiaco3.4(22)5.8(38)7.11(53)13.17(95)

Other grand finals

Earlier in the day, South Fremantle also won the reserves grand final, defeating West Perth. South Fremantle's Hayden North, who was surprisingly left out of the league team, won the Merv McIntosh Medal as the best player. The previous evening saw Claremont win the colts premiership, defeating Peel Thunder Football Club, with Lewis Broome from Claremont winning the Mel Whinnen Medal as the best player.

West Perth Football Club Australian rules football club based in Joondalup, Western Australia

The West Perth Football Club, nicknamed the Falcons, is an Australian rules football club located in Joondalup, Western Australia. West Perth competes in the West Australian Football League (WAFL) and is the oldest existing Australian rules football club in Western Australia. Originally located at Leederville Oval, the team was relocated in 1994 to Arena Joondalup, a sports complex in the northern suburbs of Perth. The team's club song is "It's a Grand Old Flag" and its traditional rivals are East Perth.

Mervyn Frederick "Merv" McIntosh was an Australian rules footballer in the (then) West Australian National Football League (WANFL). A brilliant ruckman, he was awarded the Sandover Medal as the fairest and best player in the league three times while playing with the Perth Football Club.

Claremont Football Club WAFL Australian rules football club

The Claremont Football Club, nicknamed the Tigers, is an Australian rules football club based in Claremont, Western Australia, that currently plays in the West Australian Football League (WAFL). Its official colours are navy blue and gold. Formed as the Cottesloe Beach Football Club in 1906, the club entering the WAFL in 1925 as the Claremont-Cottesloe Football Club, changing its name to the present in 1935. Claremont have won 12 senior premierships since entering the competition, including most recently the 2011 and 2012 premierships.

Aftermath

The win ensured South Fremantle's thirteenth WAFL Premiership and ended Subiaco's Premiership winning streak.

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References

  1. "South Fremantle defeats Subiaco in 2009 WAFL Grand Final". Archived from the original on 2 April 2010. Retrieved 19 August 2010.