Peel Thunder Football Club

Last updated

Peel Thunder
Peel thunder fc logo.png
Names
Full namePeel Thunder Football Club
Nickname(s)Thunder, Peelmantle
2023 season
Home-and-away season3rd (WAFL)
7th (WAFLW)
Club details
Founded1996;28 years ago (1996)
Colours  Dark blue   White   Teal
Competition West Australian Football League
CoachAdam Read (WAFL)
Captain(s) Ben Hancock (WAFL)
PremiershipsWAFL (2) WAFLW (2)
Ground(s) Rushton Park (capacity: 10,000)
Uniforms
Kit body navy teal.png
Kit body sleeveless.png
Kit shorts.svg
Kit socks hoops white.png
Kit socks long.svg
Home
Other information
Official website peelthunder.com.au

The Peel Thunder Football Club is an Australian rules football club playing in the West Australian Football League (WAFL) and WAFL Women's (WAFLW). The team is based in Mandurah, Western Australia, with their home ground being Rushton Park. The club joined the WAFL as an expansion team in 1997.

Contents

Since 2014 Peel have been in a formal alignment with the Fremantle Dockers of the Australian Football League, an arrangement which sees Fremantle's reserve players play for Peel. [1]

History

Peel Thunder Football Club was formed in 1996 after the West Australian Football Commission (WAFC) granted a ninth licence in the WAFL to the Mandurah-Peel region. The licence was issued on the condition that the club be ready to compete in the 1997 Westar Rules season. Geoff Miles was appointed as the club's inaugural coach and Phil Gilbert appointed captain. The Thunder managed just one win in 1997 and finished last on the ladder, with Scott Simister winning the inaugural best and fairest. They managed another one-win season in 1998, before going winless in 1999.

In March 2011, the club was fined $10,000 for breaching salary cap rules involving player payments to midfielder Rory O'Brien during the 2009 season. [2] [3]

Between 1997 and 2014, the Thunder failed to qualify for the finals, with their best season coming in 2008 when they recorded an 8–12 win–loss record and a sixth-place finish. [4] During that time, they collected nine wooden spoons, including three in a row twice (1997–99 & 2011–13), and finished second last seven times.

In 2014, Peel became directly aligned with the Fremantle Dockers of the Australian Football League, an arrangement which saw Fremantle's reserve players playing exclusively for Peel in the WAFL for the first time. In 2015, the second season of this arrangement, Peel qualified for the finals for the first time in its history, finishing third on the ladder with a club-best record of 13–7. [5] Due to Fremantle's decision to rest a host of its key AFL players ahead of their finals campaign, the majority of Peel's usual Fremantle contingent was called up for AFL duties, which impacted Peel's ability to field a competitive team against West Perth in the qualifying final. As a result, Peel was blown out of the water by West Perth, losing their first finals game 145–36. Despite regaining many of their Fremantle players for their semi-final clash against East Perth the following week, they were knocked out of the finals with an 84–62 defeat at the hands of the Royals.

In 2016, the Thunder finished the home and away season in fourth place on the ladder with an 11–9 record. Despite a drop off from 2015, Peel headed into the WAFL finals with a huge boost thanks to Fremantle's poor season in 2016. With Fremantle missing the finals in 2016, it provided Peel with a huge contingent of players for their finals campaign. Behind 17 Docker-listed players, the Thunder won three do-or-die finals in a row against East Perth, West Perth and South Fremantle respectively to reach their first ever WAFL grand final. In the grand final, Peel defeated Subiaco by 23 points to win their first WAFL premiership. Peel's midfield had too much running power and grunt inside for Subiaco, with Docker Connor Blakely winning the Simpson Medal on the back of 38 possessions. Fellow Docker Ed Langdon was also an important contributor with 39 disposals, eight marks and a goal. [6]

Peel were a foundation member of the WAFL Women's competition in 2019. The club recorded their first senior women's premiership in the competition in the 2020 season. [7]

Honour board

SeasonPositionWin/lossFinals resultCoachCaptainDudley Tuckey MedalLeading goalkicker
1997 91–19DNQ Geoff Miles Phil Gilbert Scott Simister Scott Simister (27)
1998 91–19 Geoff Miles
Troy Wilson
Phil Gilbert Darren Bolton Scott Simister (31)
1999 90–20 Troy Wilson Scott Simister Scott Simister Scott Simister (54)
2000 84–14 Shane Cable Bill Monaghan Vance Davison Dean Buszan (32)
2001 67–11 Shane Cable Vance Davison Derek Hall David McPharlin (25)
2002 87–11 Peter German Derek Hall Darren Bolton Scott Simister (46)
2003 91–19 John Ditchburn Derek Hall Derek Hall Derek Hall (22)
2004 85–15 Garry Hocking Brandon Hill Daniel Haines Cameron Gauci (40)
2005 93–17 Garry Hocking Grant Welsh Pat Travers Justin Wood (29)
2006 86–14 Chris Waterman Grant Welsh Rory O'Brien Dean Buszan (44)
2007 85–15 Chris Waterman Grant Welsh Daniel Haines Dean Buszan (30)
2008 68–12 Chris Waterman Grant Welsh Hayden Ballantyne Hayden Ballantyne (75)
2009 95–15 Chris Waterman Daniel Haines Ben Howlett Kain Robins (33)
2010 83–17 Trevor Williams Daniel Haines
Brendon Jones
Rory O'Brien Matthew Battye (27)
2011 95–15 Trevor Williams Brendon Jones Kristin Thornton Bradley Holmes (36)
2012 95–15 Trevor Williams
Mark Moody
Brendon Jones Brendon Jones Bradley Holmes (52)
2013 93–17 Cam Shepherd Brendon Jones Viv Michie Bradley Holmes (33)
2014 84–16 Cam Shepherd James Flaherty Brendon Jones Matt Taberner (18)
2015 313–7Semi Finalists Cam Shepherd Brendon Jones Jacob Ballard Leroy Jetta (39)
2016 411–9Premiers Cam Shepherd Gerald Ugle Matt de Boer Gerald Ugle (24)
2017 312–8Premiers Cam Shepherd Gerald Ugle Sam Collins Matt Taberner (41)
2018 77–11DNQ Cam Shepherd Gerald Ugle Danyle Pearce
Ben Howlett
Gerald Ugle
Luke Strnadica (17)
2019 77–11 Cam Shepherd Ben Howlett Bailey Banfield Blair Bell (26)
2020 90-8 Cam Shepherd Ben Howlett Jackson Merrett Hayden Ballantyne (10)
2021 76-12 Cam Shepherd Ben Howlett Tyrone Thorne Blair Bell (19)
2022 511-7Semi Finalists Geoff Valentine Ben Hancock Lloyd Meek Blair Bell (24)
2023 312-6Runners Up Geoff Valentine Ben Hancock Blair Bell Sebit Kuek (25)

Honours

Club honours

Premierships
CompetitionLevelWinsYears won
WAFL Seniors22016, 2017
WAFL Women's Seniors22020, 2021
WAFL Reserves Reserves0Nil
WAFL Colts Colts (U19)32004, 2005, 2022
Other titles and honours
Rodriguez Shield Multiple0Nil
Finishing positions
WAFL Minor premiership0Nil
Runners Up12023
Wooden spoons101997, 1998, 1999, 2003, 2005, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2020

Individual honours

Records

Source: WAFL.com.au

AFL draftees

The following is a list of Peel Thunder players who have been drafted to clubs in the Australian Football League (AFL). Players currently on an AFL list are listed in bold:

DraftPickPlayerDrafted by
1998N 10 Brandon Hill West Coast
1999R 2 Darren Bolton Fremantle
2000R 49 Dale Walkingshaw Fremantle
2001R 4 Dean Buszan West Coast
36 Daniel Haines Fremantle
2002N 2 Daniel Wells North Melbourne
2003N 4 Farren Ray Western Bulldogs
2005R 5 Ryan Nye Adelaide
40 Ashley Thornton West Coast
2005N 20 Paul Bower Carlton
28 Matt Riggio North Melbourne
54 Kristin Thornton Sydney
2006N 2 Scott Gumbleton Essendon
38 James Hawksley Brisbane Lions
47 Kyle Reimers Essendon
52 Brock O'Brien Fremantle
2007R 18 Danny Chartres Essendon
2008N 21 Hayden Ballantyne Fremantle
2009R 12 Kristin Thornton Sydney
42 Johnny Bennell Collingwood
2009N 4 Anthony Morabito Fremantle
25 Aaron Black North Melbourne
2010R 20 Ben Howlett Essendon
2010N 2 Harley Bennell Gold Coast
2011P 2 Blayne Wilson West Coast
2011R 48 Kelvin Lawrence Melbourne
2012N 31 Kamdyn McIntosh Richmond
2015R 24 Brad Walsh Carlton
2017N 9 Aaron Naughton Western Bulldogs
2018R 12 Durak Tucker Sydney
2019R 6 Jarvis Pina Fremantle
2020N 57 Isiah Winder West Coast
2021N 31 Brady Hough West Coast
2021R 36 Sandy Brock Gold Coast

Source: PeelThunder.com.au

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fremantle Football Club</span> Australian rules football club

The Fremantle Football Club, nicknamed the Dockers, is a professional Australian rules football club competing in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's elite competition. The team was founded in 1994 to represent the port city of Fremantle, a stronghold of Australian rules football in Western Australia. The Dockers were the second team from the state to be admitted to the competition, following the West Coast Eagles in 1987. Both Fremantle and the West Coast Eagles are owned by the West Australian Football Commission (WAFC), with a board of directors operating Fremantle on the commission's behalf.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Australian Football League</span> Australian football league

The West Australian Football League is an Australian rules football league based in Perth, Western Australia. The league currently consists of ten teams, which play each other in a 20-round season usually lasting from April to September, with the top five teams playing off in a finals series, culminating in a Grand Final. The league also runs reserves, colts (under-19) and women's competitions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Claremont Football Club</span> WAFL Australian rules football club

The Claremont Football Club, nicknamed Tigers, is an Australian rules football club based in Claremont, Western Australia, that currently plays in the West Australian Football League (WAFL) and WAFL Women's (WAFLW). 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 men's premierships since entering the competition, including most recently the 2011 and 2012 premierships.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Subiaco Football Club</span> Australian rules football club in WAFL

The Subiaco Football Club, nicknamed the Lions and known before 1973 as the Maroons, is an Australian rules football club in the West Australian Football League (WAFL) and WAFL Women's (WAFLW). It was founded in 1896, and admitted to the WAFL in 1901, along with North Fremantle. The club is currently based at Leederville Oval, having previously played at Subiaco Oval.

Jarrad Schofield is an Australian rules footballer who played for the West Coast Eagles, Port Adelaide and Fremantle in the Australian Football League (AFL) and Subiaco in the West Australian Football League (WAFL).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jonathon Griffin</span> Australian rules footballer

Jonathon Griffin is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Adelaide Football Club and Fremantle Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). A ruckman from Western Australia, Griffin played for East Fremantle in the West Australian Football League (WAFL) before being drafted by Adelaide at the 2005 Rookie draft. Upgraded to the club's senior list for the 2007 season, he debuted the following season, and played 41 games for Adelaide before being traded to Fremantle during the 2010–11 trading period.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clancee Pearce</span> Australian rules footballer

Clancee Pearce is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Fremantle Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sam Menegola</span> Australian rules footballer

Sam Menegola is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Geelong Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). He had previously been listed by Hawthorn and Fremantle, but didn't play a senior game for either club. He is related to former Swan Districts premiership winner and Richmond player, Todd Menegola.

Gerald Ugle is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Greater Western Sydney Giants in the Australian Football League (AFL).

The 2014 WAFL season was the 130th season of the various incarnations of the West Australian Football League (WAFL). The season began on 22 March 2014 and concluded on 21 September 2014 with the 2014 WAFL Grand Final. West Perth entered the season as reigning premiers after defeating East Perth by 49 points in the 2013 WAFL Grand Final at Patersons Stadium.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Connor Blakely</span> Australian rules footballer (born 1996)

Connor Blakely is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Fremantle Football Club and the Gold Coast Suns in the Australian Football League (AFL).

Joshua Deluca is a former professional Australian rules footballer who last played for the Carlton Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL) after being delisted.

Ethan Hughes is an Australian rules footballer who plays for the Fremantle Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shane Yarran</span> Australian rules footballer

Shane Yarran was an Australian rules footballer. He played for the Fremantle Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL) in the 2016 season. Yarran also played for Subiaco and Peel Thunder in the West Australian Football League (WAFL) and for Kelmscott and Gosnells in the Western Australian Amateur Football League (WAAFL).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hayley Miller</span> Australian rules footballer

Hayley Miller is an Australian rules footballer and the co vice-captain of the Fremantle Football Club in the AFL Women's competition. Miller won the Fremantle fairest and best and leading goalkicker awards in season 6 and was named in the 2022 AFL Women's season 6 All-Australian team. She served as Fremantle captain for three seasons, and is also Fremantle's games record holder with 70 games.

Stefan Giro is an Australian rules footballer who played for the West Coast Eagles Football Club and Fremantle in the Australian Football League (AFL).

WAFL Women's (WAFLW) is an Australian rules football league based in Perth, Western Australia. The WAFLW is the premier women's football competition in Western Australia, and from 2023 is contested by eight teams owned and operated by clubs in the men's West Australian Football League (WAFL).

The 2021 WAFL Women's season was the third season of the WAFL Women's (WAFLW). The season commenced on 20 February and concluded with the Grand Final on 11 July 2021. The competition was contested by six clubs, the same as the previous season.

The 2022 WAFL season is the 138th season of the various incarnations of the West Australian Football League (WAFL).The season commenced on the 15th of April, and concluded with the Grand Final on the 1st of October, with West Perth defeating Claremont at Leederville Oval by 12 points. Fixtures were released in stages, to allow for COVID flexibility. The first stage saw the first nine rounds of the season be released, rounds 10-14 were released before the start of Round 7, and the final rounds (14-20) were released on July 8, before the start of Round 12. All the teams from the previous season have been retained, as there was speculation if the West Coast Eagles reserves would return.

The 2022 WAFL Women's season was the fourth season of the WAFL Women's (WAFLW). The season commenced on 19 February and concluded with the Grand Final on 2 July 2022. West Perth made their debut in the competition, increasing the league's size to seven clubs. Claremont won the premiership, and defeated East Fremantle by 8 points in the grand final.

References

  1. Quartermaine, Braden (31 October 2012). "West Coast and Fremantle will enter WAFL alignments from 2013". PerthNow.com.au. Retrieved 9 November 2012.
  2. "Peel Thunder fined $10,000 for salary cap breach". PerthNow.com.au. 16 March 2011. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
  3. Lewis, Ross (16 March 2011). "Peel pay high price for cap breach". The West Australian. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
  4. Coleman-Heard, Rory (29 September 2016). "The 'Thunder Connection'". FremantleFC.com.au. Retrieved 29 September 2016.
  5. Pike, Chris (5 September 2015). "McDonald's WAFL Qualifying Finals Preview". wafootball.com.au. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
  6. Pike, Chris (25 September 2016). "Fremantle-boosted Peel Thunder wins historic WAFL premiership after downing Subiaco". PerthNow.com.au. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
  7. "Peel crowned Optus WAFLW Premiers". WA Football. 19 September 2020.