Zac Clarke and Matt de Boer put in strong performances in Peel Thunder’s upset win over Subiaco at Domain Stadium on Sunday.
Clarke dominated in the ruck yet again, finishing with 37 hitouts, 17 disposals and a goal, whilst de Boer finished with a game high 36 disposals and also eight tackles.
Clarke was joined in the ruck by Jack Hannath, who finished with 19 hitouts and provided a strong presence up forward, kicking two goals.
In the mix: Round 12 v Brisbane
Brady Grey also performed well for the Thunder, finishing with 22 disposals and laying 11 tackles.
Fremantle midfielder Josh Deluca (19 disposals) praised the efforts of Peel’s Fremantle listed players for their work on and off the field.
“They definitely show a lot of leadership and they put their best foot forward,” He said.
“They’re great leaders on and off the field and they give 100% effort, and that’s why we love having them down there.”
The win was the Thunder’s first over the defending premiers since Round 8, 2013.
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The margin never grew beyond three goals for the entire afternoon, and although the Lions led by nine points at the 23 minute mark of the final term, the Thunder kicked the last two goals of the game to claim a fantastic 11.8 (74) to 10.10 (70) win.
Deluca said that the issues over the surface at Medibank Stadium which caused the rescheduling of the game didn’t have an effect on Peel’s performance, mentioning a Fremantle mantra.
“We like to think that as a team we can play anywhere at any time- we’re not really dictated to by the conditions or where we’re at, so I think that wherever we play we’ll give 100% effort, and that’s what we’re more focused on.”
“And it was definitely a good experience to play on Domain- We all enjoyed it.”
With Peel going into the bye at 7-4 on the back of three consecutive wins, DeLuca says that the win can help set up the second half of Peel’s season.
“Subiaco have been a benchmark for the past two to three years, so it’s definitely confidence building for the boys knowing that we’re resilient as a team, we can get over the line and really push the top teams,” he said.
Other notable performances by Fremantle players included Tendai Mzungu (22 disposals) Ed Langdon (19 disposals, one goal) and Tanner Smith in defence (16 disposals, 10 marks).
