TOPIC:

Well,well well,despite half a dozen shaky wins and my concerns about our forward line,today’s gutsy win puts us in the box seat for a tilt at another flag.The last 2 weeks was always going to give us a good indication of where we sit in the premiership pecking order,and we’ve definitely proved we are mudlarks if nothing else,and we will definitely be doing a few rain dances in the coming weeks.Coach Ross will probably have a couple of selection headaches with the return from injury of the 2 gun midfielders in Scott and Brayshaw,and I’ve been very impressed with the form of fringe players like Fullgrabe who has been excellent down back,Jayden Peake who’s a youngster with a bit of leg speed,and great clubman Nathan Eaton has been very solid down back,and I’m not sure Nick Robertson is any walk up start to reclaim his spot in the side.

A very good win today, Lucky, though we missed a few chances to put Peel away much earlier.
Being the (Arch)pessimist that I am, I must admit that after the debacle at Claremont a month ago, I genuinely felt like our fortunes were on the wane and that we were no certainty to win any of our last four games and could even miss out on the finals.
The first half against West Perth didn't inspire confidence, particularly with Hamish Brayshaw and Scott Jones gone for the day by half-time, but since then we've played some very solid (rather than spectacular) football.
What's impressed me most this year is the improvement and solidity in our vastly underrated defence, having conceded just 20 goals in the past four games (admittedly, conditions haven't been conducive to goalkicking in the past fortnight).
Every one of today's 22 deserves their spot in the team to play either the Thunder or Swans in a fortnight, so it will be interesting to see our line-up for the second semi-final, particularly with Hamish Brayshaw and Angus Scott likely to be available for selection.   

Archie Duda Goal Machine wrote:

A very good win today, Lucky, though we missed a few chances to put Peel away much earlier.
Being the (Arch)pessimist that I am, I must admit that after the debacle at Claremont a month ago, I genuinely felt like our fortunes were on the wane and that we were no certainty to win any of our last four games and could even miss out on the finals.
The first half against West Perth didn't inspire confidence, particularly with Hamish Brayshaw and Scott Jones gone for the day by half-time, but since then we've played some very solid (rather than spectacular) football.
What's impressed me most this year is the improvement and solidity in our vastly underrated defence, having conceded just 20 goals in the past four games (admittedly, conditions haven't been conducive to goalkicking in the past fortnight).
Every one of today's 22 deserves their spot in the team to play either the Thunder or Swans in a fortnight, so it will be interesting to see our line-up for the second semi-final, particularly with Hamish Brayshaw and Angus Scott likely to be available for selection.   

Yes Archie,although I’m not entirely convinced we would’ve conquered our big dangers the last fortnight on sound dry tracks,I reckon the old Royals DNA of playing hard tough contested football,has gone up a level from the second half of that Derby game,onwards and the passion and commitment by our players,and even our unheralded ones is putting a smile on the faces of the black and blue diehards such us ourselves,and hearing that magnificent East Perth chant is just music to my ears.

Agreed, Lucky, we still have a few things to work on and having a "heavy" track would not disadvantage us.
The second semi-final being at Leederville should be an enormous advantage given that we've won 9 of 10 games there this year (albeit, some have been cliffhangers), with our only loss being to Claremont by 9 points.
There's still a few things the boys need to work on, including their delivery into the forward line (the tall Peel defenders thwarted many inside-50s yesterday) and reducing our goal-front inaccuracy.
I hope the vastly underrated Brad Fullgrabe is OK as he left the ground late with what may have been a hand/arm/shoulder injury.
Hopefully, it was just a precautionary move and Fullers will be good to go in the second semi.  

Well Arch and RL are you feeling a little more confident? You certainly are peaking at the right time of the season and that’s good coaching by McQueen.Yes I know the last two games have been in the wet but I’ve watched them both and whilst it hasn’t been pretty what you guys have been is tough,relentless and pretty cohesive- attributes which are vital in finals.Really the premiership is yours to lose.If you look at the other contenders you should have them covered.Whether CL or SF get in they are really just making up the numbers- EF will win.If EF progress all the way to the GF they will have had 3 tough games and should be pretty spent.If they get there they will have done a remarkable job with all their issues this season but just maybe a hill too hard to climb.I tipped them to make the GF this year and it still could happen but it’s going to be tough.SD are the big improvers and their heart and desire is indisputable.My only concern is their game plan in finals.Tough and tackling is the byword in finals and that doesn’t seem to be their style.Flow on and handball is nice to watch but rarely is that finals football.Peel are a danger but as you know if they get into the GF only 12 Dockers can play and whilst their support players have done well this year there will be some disruption to their continuity.If Peel make it all the way they will be coming up against a settled and committed side - a formula for success.Enjoy the finals.

Congrats on the minor premiership, great job by the EP boys. 

Good points by Archie and Mr Ness,but we have to be realistic in the fact that the quagmire conditions in our last 2 games,has nullified the impact of the Marsh’s O’reilly’s,Sebit’sand Taberner’s,although yesterday we did dominate the inside 50 count.As Archie alluded to,the Peel Defenders did take one too many marks,but we have controlled territory in these critical games,and our skill level in the conditions yesterday,was off the charts.           Coach Roscoe is a sound coach in his own right,and the building blocks were already set by my old mate,but I’ve been screaming till I’ve been Blue in the face about the recruitment of a quality key defender,and although he was a little shaky in his first season,Macreedie has been absolutely magnificent down back,and has really stabilised the backline,and how good has little pocket rocket Riley Saunders been as a rebounding defender??Mitch Crowden has been unbelievable with his ability to win the contested possession and his exquisite ball use,and Tom North his ex Docker teammate,has added a lot of class,and how good has the ex Falconi the wild bull Liam Tedesco been??and he has shown his capacity to play in the middle as well the forward line,and didn’t he make his presence known towards the Big Burly Mandurah fisherman yesterday,who probably pulls the nets up with his bare hands,and he didn’t appreciate Teddy’s added attention,and a special mention as well for Peel recruit Sturrock who’s played on a wing in recent weeks,and has given us plenty of drive.

TheFeds wrote:

Well Arch and RL are you feeling a little more confident? You certainly are peaking at the right time of the season and that’s good coaching by McQueen.Yes I know the last two games have been in the wet but I’ve watched them both and whilst it hasn’t been pretty what you guys have been is tough,relentless and pretty cohesive- attributes which are vital in finals.Really the premiership is yours to lose.If you look at the other contenders you should have them covered.Whether CL or SF get in they are really just making up the numbers- EF will win.If EF progress all the way to the GF they will have had 3 tough games and should be pretty spent.If they get there they will have done a remarkable job with all their issues this season but just maybe a hill too hard to climb.I tipped them to make the GF this year and it still could happen but it’s going to be tough.SD are the big improvers and their heart and desire is indisputable.My only concern is their game plan in finals.Tough and tackling is the byword in finals and that doesn’t seem to be their style.Flow on and handball is nice to watch but rarely is that finals football.Peel are a danger but as you know if they get into the GF only 12 Dockers can play and whilst their support players have done well this year there will be some disruption to their continuity.If Peel make it all the way they will be coming up against a settled and committed side - a formula for success.Enjoy the finals.

Very good points, The Feds, as I suspect that Ross McQueen wasn't quite as alarmed as Royals fans such as myself after the big loss to Claremont.
Even when carbon-copy last-quarter fadeouts nearly cost East Perth victories against both South Freo and Perth, Ross said that he'd experimented with a few moves, perhaps with a longer-term view towards the finals.
Since then (excluding the aberation against the Tigers), the Royals have shown no signs of  final-quarter fadeouts and have thrived in generally tough conditions for footy.
In addition to the "big three" of Mitch Crowden, Angus Schumacher and Hamish Brayshaw (when fit), EP has had the luxury of rotating Michael Randall, Liam Tedesco, Tom North and Christian Ameduri, all of whom have an "appetite for the contest", through the midfield.
The anticipated return of Angus Scott will provide some handy outside run.
Of the other players, I agree with Lucky about the great form of swingman Harry Macreadie, Riley Saunders and Jimmy Sturrock.  
There are certainly two intriguing contests in Week 1 of the finals.
I think Claremont has become a very good side after a shaky first couple of months of the season and I reckon their game against reigning premier East Freo will go right down to the wire.
The day before that clash, and given eligibility requirements, it will be very interesting to see what side Peel fields against Swans after the Dockers missed the finals boat.