The 196cm tall defender was opposed to ex-AFL player Chad Jones in Peel’s backline, equipping himself well.
Senior development coach and assistant coach Simon Lloyd said Smith’s two way run was another positive of his game.
“When Peel had the football he ran hard to the open side to create and attract the football,” Lloyd said.
“He ended up having 23 possessions and 13 marks.”
Tanner Smith (PT) 23 disposals (12 kicks, 11 handballs) 13 marks
Tanner played key back on a number of talls. He demonstrated tight defence, which was characterised by repeat spoiling, he had close to 15 spoils in the game. He showed great bodywork on more experienced opponents and we were very happy with his competitiveness at ground level and in the air.
Tom Sheridan (PT) 21 disposals (12 kicks, 9 handballs) 4 marks, 4 tackles
Tom played inside midfield and was opposed to Andrew Foster who is an accomplished WAFL player. Tom’s application to the contested ball, getting inside his opponent at stoppages and tackling was strong in the first half. He had 17 possessions in the first quarter, but dropped away in the second half, but he will build on that. We felt against a dominant team that physically intimidated Peel, Tom really stood up, and although there was a drop off in the second half, he still had an influence around stoppages.
Alex Forster (PT) 11 disposals (8 kicks, 3 handballs) 6 marks
Alex played half back. We felt that he positioned well at stoppages and when he did have the ball in his hands, he lowered his eyes and was effective with his disposal. We are looking for Alex to have more presence in the air and at ground level.
Viv Michie (PT) 26 disposals (13 kicks, 13 handballs) 4 tackles
Another solid performance for Viv playing inside mid. He was followed by Pat McGinnity from West Coast and had a good battle with his direct opponent. He was strong in fighting the tackle and showed strong attack on the ball. He regularly won first possession. He made some good decisions with the ball through the arcs and showed leadership and effort to assist in getting his team back into the contest.
Matt Taberner (PT) 15 disposals (11 kicks, 4 handballs) 11 marks, 2 goals
Matt started slowly due to Peel not having many entries in the forward 50 in the first half. After quarter time he got to work and ground out some longer leads to attract the ball. Overall, he took 11 marks with four of those being strong contested grabs. He displayed composure when he had the ball in his hands for the majority of the game and was clearly the hardest working forward on the ground.
Josh Simpson (EF) 12 disposals (7 kicks, 5 handballs)
Josh played wing and forward and started well by staying close, showing some strong tackles and release run, to finish with seven disposals in the first quarter. For the remainder of the game he didn't gather a lot of possessions, but he was better in the fourth quarter where he got closer to the contest and generated some run on the spread. His emphasis has to be ensuring that he plays consistently over the four quarters and stays involved in the contest.
Max Duffy (EF) 11 disposals (6 kicks, 5 handballs) 2 goals
Max played as a high forward and also deep with a short run on the wing. He flashed in and out of the game. When he did play higher he looked like more of a threat on the opposition, where he was able to get up to the stoppages and impact or release hard inside 50. Overall, his defensive work rate was better and he will continue to build on this.
Josh Mellington (WP) 16 disposals (12 kicks, 4 handballs) 4 marks
Josh played predominately high forward with brief stints on the wing. Josh's focus has been on strong run and breaking to space, which he showed in the third quarter, when he worked hard to space and got on the end of it. This is something that we need to see consistently throughout the game. His physicality early in the fourth quarter was good, he hit in hard off the line, drawing a head-high free kick. He showed a couple of good defensive efforts where he put on a good chase and made a good spoil. We need to see this more consistently.
Lachie Neale (SD) 23 disposals (11 kicks, 12 handballs) 4 marks, 1 goal
Lachie played high forward for the majority of the game with shorter bursts on the wing and as an inside mid. Lachie was very good in congestion with his hands and moved in late at stoppages to impact the contest, where he had eight clearances. In the second quarter he showed long release run inside forward 50 from a stoppage, which resulted in him kicking a goal. His bodywork around some stoppages was a positive.
Alex Howson (EF) Reserves 11 disposals (9 kicks, 2 handballs) 5 goals
Alex played deep forward and is starting to show some improvement and growth over the past few weeks, having kicked 13 goals in the past three reserves games. He kicked five this weekend against West Perth. His positioning was good in regards to getting down the line and competing in the air, where he took six contested marks, five of those being inside the forward 50. Alex showed solid goal kicking routine, kicking five goals straight on the set shot.
WAFL League Results
Claremont 15.12 (102) defeated 7.7 (49)
Swan Districts 20.10 (130) defeated Subiaco 12.11 (83)
East Perth 15.11 (101) defeated Perth 12.11 (83)
West Perth 12.11 (83) defeated East Fremantle 10.9 (69)
