A Grade Prepares for Finals

THE battle for the WA Amateur Football League A Grade Premiership is now under way with five teams competing to make it to the Grand Final on September 22.

With the dress rehearsals now completed, all that remains is to see which team will be crowned A Grade Premiers, the only certainty being any side is capable of wining it on their given day.

At the top of the pile is Trinity Aquinas who have come from finishing seventh last year to be minor premiers in 2012 after losing just three games for the year.

Of those three losses, two came at the hands of seventh placed Maddington, with University being the only side from the top five to have handed them a loss.

The Round 11 victory over Trinity will give the University team confidence that it can go back-to-back after a slow start to the year.

After winning the 2011 A Grade Premiership University struggled in the early rounds of 2012, losing their first two matches of the year and sitting on three wins and three losses at round six.

The round six loss to Whitford proved to be a catalyst for change though, and after a 30-point victory over Mt Lawley in the Grand Final replay University went on a rampage, winning 11 out of their final 12 games to storm into second place.

They now face the side they replaced in second spot, Collegians, in this weekends’ Qualifying Final.

After being the form team early in the season, Collegians struggled to maintain the form which saw them sitting in second place on nine wins and two losses after 11 rounds.

Losses to bottom five sides Mt Lawley, Maddington and North Fremantle in the back end of the season proved costly for Collegians, slipping to third and relinquishing the right to host the Qualifying Final.

The other match of the weekend pits old foes North Beach and Whitford against each other in an Elimination Final at Charlse Riley Reserve.

Long-time champions of the A Grade, North Beach have numerous finals performers but face the tough task of winning four in a row if they are to come from outside the top three and pinch another Premiership.

If any side can come from outside the top three it would be the former champ, but Coach Bill Duckworth will need to have his team fully focused on their task this weekend or risk going out in the first week.

Local rivals Whitford would love nothing more than to beat the Beach and send them packing in the finals, and the Warriors will be full of confidence after knocking them off at Charlse Riley in the last round of the season to secure fifth spot. Bounce down for both finals is at 2:30pm.

While the top five are making plans for September, at the other end of the table the bottom two are ruing what could have been as they face the realisation of B Grade football next year.

Bottom placed Hamersley Carine were assured of relegation for much of the year, struggling after winning the B Grade flag, but it came down to the final match of the season for North Fremantle to be ensured relegation.

Just one win and percentage behind Swan Athletic, A Grade stalwarts North Fremantle needed to defeat the in-form Mt Lawley and hope for other results to go their way to have any hope of remaining in A Grade next year.

The Magpies stood tall and did their bit and defeated Mt Lawley but Swan Athletic fought well against the minor premiers Trinity Aquinas, losing by just 10 points and keeping their spot in the A Grade by just 2 percent.

With Hamersley Carine and North Fremantle now guaranteed to be playing football in B Grade next year, the only question remaining is who will be crowned Premiers on September 22^nd.