Peel Thunder were defeated by Swan Districts 11.8 74 to 12.6 78, in a down-to-the-wire clash at Bassendean Oval on Saturday afternoon.
Eleven Fremantle-listed players lined up for Peel, all having an even contribution in the clash.
Starting with heavy rainfall, the game was a contested battle early in the first quarter, with both teams struggling to score.
As the rain stopped, Peel began to dominate field position through clearances and good contested work in the midfield, led by Mitch Crowden, Connor Blakely and Lloyd Meek.
After an inaccurate start in front of goal, a Sebit Kuek goal gave Peel the lead late in the first quarter.
Peel started strongly in the second quarter with quick goals to Blair Bell and Ben Middleton in the first five minutes.
Blakely continued his dominance in the midfield setting up a number of link-up plays that led to Peel scores. He finished with 22 first half disposals.
A strong contest from Josh Treacy, resulting in a goal from Sam Sturt, helped Peel take a 14-point lead into half time.
It was a tough third quarter, as the Swans fought back kicking four goals to three, narrowing the margin down to nine points.
A thrilling final term saw a combined eight goals kicked as the game opened up.
Majors to Sturt and Liam Henry were not enough, as the Swans overpowered Peel, kicking five goals to three in the quarter.
Blakely was the standout player for Peel finishing with 38 disposals and seven marks, alongside Meek (21 disposals, 44 hitouts) and Crowden (26 disposals, eight tackles) in the midfield.
Fremantle youngsters Neil Erasmus (21 disposals) and Matthew Johnson (17 disposals) showed their class and potential throughout.
Karl Worner (22 disposals) and Henry (21 disposals and a goal) battled hard on the wings, with Joel Hamling (six disposals and four marks) solid in defence.
The trio of forwards, Treacy (16 hitouts, five tackles), Sturt (16 disposals, two goals) and Kuek (one goal, three marks) worked hard to provide a contest up forward.
Peel Thunder now sit 6th on the ladder and will now prepare for next week’s important match against East Perth for a 2:10pm bounce at Rushton Park in Mandurah.
Peel Thunder 2.4 5.5 8.7 11.8 (74)
Swan Districts 2.0 3.3 7.4 12.6 (78)
Goals
Peel: Guy Barnes 3, Ben Middleton 3, Sam Sturt 2, Liam Henry 1, Sebit Kuek 1, Blair Bell 1
Swan Districts: Christopher Jones 5, Samuel Fisher 2, Sebastian Bright 1, Nathan Ireland 1, Ryan Kemp 1, Jesse Palmer 1, Lachlan Riley 1
Best
Peel: Connor Blakely, Mitch Crowden, Lloyd Meek
Swan Districts: Jesse Turner, Christopher Jones, Aidan Clarke
Stats
| # | PLAYER | K | H | D | M | T | HO | I50 | FF | FA | G | B |
| 11 | BLAKELY Connor | 18 | 20 | 38 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 64 | CROWDEN Mitchell | 13 | 13 | 26 | 5 | 8 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 15 | WORNER Karl | 14 | 8 | 22 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 55 | HENRY Liam | 18 | 3 | 21 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 7 | ERASMUS Neil | 7 | 14 | 21 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| 25 | MEEK Lloyd | 8 | 13 | 21 | 3 | 5 | 44 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | JOHNSON Matthew | 13 | 4 | 17 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 63 | STURT Sam | 9 | 7 | 16 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| 40 | KUEK Sebit | 4 | 5 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| 39 | HAMLING Joel | 4 | 2 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 43 | TREACY Joshua | 3 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 16 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
