Kepler played key back opposed to Shaun Marusic and Nicholas Rodda keeping them goalless. He showed some strong bodywork in contests was effective with his spoils and was a reliable one-on-one defender and actively won the ball at ground level.
Anthony Morabito 21 disposals (13 kicks, 8 handballs) 2 goals
Anthony played on the wing and had periods in defence. He showed some good acceleration and burst in traffic and space with his GPS showing high sprint distance. He had a couple of good passages of defence transition, where he ran long and hard to cover for a teammate. He kicked two goals as a midfielder and is continuing to improve as the weeks progress.
Garrick Ibbotson 25 disposals (11 kicks, 14 handballs) 5 marks
Garrick played in defence with periods on the wing. He showed some strong link-up run through the corridor and some good passages of use. He also showed some instances of good defensive positioning where he was able to release his opponent into congestion and effect as the plus one.
Sam Menegola 33 disposals (17 kicks, 16 handballs) 5 tackles
It was a real positive to see Sam back playing after having not played for six weeks. Sam came into the team playing inside mid and had a run-with role on Shane Nelson. He won seven clearances and found plenty of the ball with 33 possessions. He tackled well in the contest and showed that he hasn’t lost any of his work rate. He needs to focus on ensuring his primary role is to stop his opponent, but overall it was a good first game back.
Tommy Sheridan 32 disposals (16 kicks, 16 handballs) 6 marks, 2 goals
Tommy was one of Peel’s better players for the day, playing as an inside mid and briefly going to the forward line and wing at times. He ran hard through the lines and his work rate was high. He worked hard both ways whilst in the midfield and used the ball effectively.
Colin Sylvia 14 disposals (6 kicks, 8 handballs)
Colin played as an inside mid and went forward at times. He showed passages where he used his body well in the clearances and collected eight groundballs. He needs to continue to work on getting into useable positions when Peel has the ball.
Jacob Ballard 22 disposals (6 kicks, 16 handballs) 5 marks, 1 goal
Jacob played on the wing and as high forward. He worked really hard and has shown during his time at the club that he constantly puts his body on the line and is strong in traffic. Jacob looked to handball effectively to the inside runner to create play at times. It was a positive game for Jacob.
Brady Grey 14 disposals (6 kicks, 8 handballs) 4 tackles
Brady was tagging Rohan Kerr, who is an accomplished WAFL player keeping him to 14 possessions. He showed a strong commitment to his role typified by work rate and stuck to his role all day. Brady has played in a variety of roles and continues to develop as a footballer.
Josh Simpson 12 disposals (6 kicks, 6 handballs)
Josh played in defence for the game. In the first half he showed run and bounce from defence and used the ball well. He also showed some composure in congestion and collected five groundballs. He faded in the second half but there were some positive passages of play.
Alex Pearce 14 disposals (9 kicks, 5 handballs) 4 marks
After eight weeks out Alex came back into the team playing as a key back. He continues to show physicality, good judgment and sound defensive skills. He also showed some strong second and third efforts in tackling and pressuring. It’s a real credit to Alex after being out for such a long period of time to be be able to return to league football.
Tom Vandeleur 17 disposals (15 kicks, 2 handballs) 9 marks
Tom played in defence in the Peel reserves. He showed some good passages where he read the cues and was able to come off his opponent and mark, taking nine marks for the day. He showed some run and bounce out of defence.
