Eagles clinch season opener

West Coast 11.18 (84) def. St Kilda 9.12 (66)

West Coast has claimed victory in the 2006 season opener over St Kilda, clinching an 18-point victory tonight at Subiaco Oval.

The Eagles booted five consecutive majors either side of half-time, which proved to be the main factor in the victory.

West Coast was the only side to make a late change, with Travis Gaspar being omitted for erratic forward Ashley Sampi.

For the Eagles, ruckman Dean Cox (26 possessions, 24 hitouts, two goals) was influential around the ground and in the ruck all night, while Daniel Kerr (30 possessions, one goal) was superb through the midfield.

For the Saints, veteran Robert Harvey (27 possessions, one goal) was sensational through the midfield, as was former captain Lenny Hayes (26 possessions, three goals).

In sublime conditions for football, the home side started in superb style, with Cox booting the opening goal of the season after dominating St Kilda ruckman Cain Ackland in the early stages.

Andrew Embley then stretched the margin for the Eagles to 10 points, with a superb snap sailing through the big sticks.

With St Kilda in need of a reply, the ever-reliable Harvey answered the call, slotting St Kilda’s first major of the year to cut the deficit back to three points.

Nick Riewoldt and Hayes slotted the next two majors for the visitors, stretching the Saints’ lead to 11 points.

Cox steadied the ship for West Coast with a major after he received a free kick for being infringed in the marking contest, and at quarter-time the Saints led by only four points.

West Coast kicked off the second term in similar fashion to the first, with Tyson Stenglein booting a goal inside the first 30 seconds of the term, and sending the crowd into a frenzy by handing the Eagles a two-point lead.

The Saints replied immediately, with a sensational piece of architecture from Stephen Milne giving powerhouse forward Frasier Gehrig his first goal of the season and St Kilda a four-point lead.

The hosts lifted the tempo to leave St Kilda in their wake, with West Coast booting the next three goals, including a scintillating effort by Embley from outside the 50 arc.

St Kilda coach Grant Thomas would’ve been relieved to hear the siren sound, and at the long break the Eagles led by 15 points.

The Eagles continued to assert themselves in the third term, as they booted the first two goals of the quarter through Kerr and Adam Selwood, and stretched their lead out to 28 points.

But the Saints responded with two majors against the tide through Hayes, who managed to goal from 55 metres, and 19-year old Fergus Watts, who booted his first goal in AFL football, and in doing so, cut the deficit back to three goals.

Quentin Lynch provided the steadier for the Eagles, bringing the margin back out to 23 points, and giving the Eagles some breathing space.

St Kilda kept fighting and they managed to boot the next two goals through Gehrig and Brett Voss, cutting the margin back to 12 points.

Sampi steadied the ship for the Eagles in the shadows of the last break, manufacturing a superb snap goal which took the margin back out to 18 points at three-quarter-time.

The Eagles started the last term poorly, missing three opportunities on goal in the early minutes that could have put St Kilda out of the game.

The Saints took advantage and kicked the first major of the term through Hayes, who launched a huge kick from 50 metres to bring the margin back to 15 points.

The remainder of the term proved to be full of missed opportunities, as both sides booted behinds – the Eagles managed seven behinds in the last quarter.

Despite the inaccuracy from the hosts, St Kilda was unable to capitalise, handing the Eagles an 18-point victory and the first points of season 2006.

Next week sees West Coast take on Adelaide at AAMI Stadium on Sunday afternoon, while St Kilda will go head-to-head with Richmond at Telstra Dome on Friday night.

•  Have a view on this story? Send us your feedback!