South Bunbury have won the 2024, Dale Alcock Homes South West, SWFL Grand Final at Hands Memorial Oval on Sunday afternoon to go through the entire season undefeated.
More than 4000 fans attended the Grand Final and witnessed the Tigers take the 2024 Premiership with a clinical display.
Photo courtesy of Jon Gellweiler.The Tigers set up the victory in the opening term, kicking four goals, while Bunbury managed two behinds. Kade Wallrodt kicked the opening goal of the Grand Final with a clever snap, before Blaine Johnson kicked the first of his five goals for the match, coverting a free kick from 40m out. A clever snap by Lachlan Riley from a Boundary throw-in gave the Tigers their third, and when Johnson recieved another free kick, the Bulldogs found themselves four goals down at quarter time.
The Bulldogs needed a good start to the second quarter and they got it via Jethro Barraclough, who was on the end of a coast to coast play, which lifted the spirits of the Bulldogs faithful. But moments later, Richard Bourne would mark at the top of the goal square to extend the margin, and when Riley goals from deep in the pocket, the margin extended to 31 points. Bunbury needed to respond and they did with consecutive goals for the first time in the match with Hamish Hall rewarded for a good tackle, as he pegged the margin back to 24 points. Two minutes late Dylan Heasman goaled from deep in the pocket, and all of a sudden the margin was back to 18 points. The momentum the Bulldogs had gained was snuffed out late in the quarter, when Tyson Lane was the recipient of a 50m penalty, as the Tigers led by 24 points at half time.
If things weren’t already tough enough for the Bulldogs, the Tigers kicked the opening two goals of the third, with some wizardry on the boundary line from Jace Cormack, giving the Tigers a game high 36 point lead. Every time Bunbury appeared to be gaining some momentum the Tigers would kick a goal and at the final change the Tigers had sucked the life out of the contest, leading by 44 points.
Bunbury would win the final term by two points, but the Tigers were always in control.
Tyson Lane won the Pike Medal as best on ground in the Grand Final, with the crowd of 4075, the second largest in the last fifteen years.
Match Centre
South Bunbury 4.2.26 7.4.46 12.8.80 15.9.99
Bunbury 0.2.2 3.4.22 5.6.36 8.9.57
Goals: South Bunbury – Blaine Johnson 5, Tyson Lane 4, Lachlan Riley 2, Richard Bourne 1, Jace Cormack 1, Ethan Nordahl 1, Kade Wallrodt 1. Bunbury – Dylan Heasman 2, Jethro Barraclough 1, Harry Creasey 1, Hamish Hall 1, Joel Houghton 1, Jesse Kirwen 1, Jett Woods 1.
Best: South Bunbury – Tyson Lane, Blaine Johnson, Kevin Chitty, Kade Wallrodt, Shaun Crane. Bunbury – Jesse Gribble, Dylan Heasman, Denholm King, Jackson Oliver, Jesse Kirwen, Xavier Williamson.
Ground: Hands Memorial Oval
Umpires: Scott Jones, Braiden Surrall, Cameron Valenti
Reports: Nil
Pike Medal: Tyson Lane (South Bunbury)
Crowd: 4075
Photos courtesy of Wayne Hislop