An even spread of goal scorers and some second-half dominance helped steer the Peel Thunderbirds’ league squad to their eighth win from the season’s first nine games when they smashed Perth to the tune of 94 points on Sunday afternoon.
Coming off a bye week, the Thunderbirds couldn’t be stopped as they put Perth to the sword to take the game 14.18 (102) to 1.2 (8) in front of a home crowd at Bendigo Bank Stadium.
Peel got the early jump on their guests with a three goal to one first quarter giving them an early advantage, but it wasn’t until after quarter time that the home side well and truly found their rhythm.
Coach Mark Fenton was looking for intensity coming out of a week off, and he got it in spades with his side keeping Perth goalless across the final three quarters.
The Thundebirds led by 40 at half time, and it was a big third quarter from Bailey Molloy that kept the train rolling in the second half.
Molloy nailed three majors in the penultimate term as Peel extended their advantage to a whopping 73-points at the final break, before ending the game up 94.
Kira Phillips joined Molloy with three goals of her own on the day, while Savannah Ahearn booted a pair.
Kayla Bradshaw, Ava Muir, Ebonee Hardie, Bethany Bond, Katie Grieve and Chalise Lange also got among the scorecard.
Fenton was pleased with his side’s performance against what he described as a “gritty” Perth outfit.
“I thought Perth were much better than the scoreboard suggests, so for our girls to keep the foot on the pedal across four quarters was very pleasing,” he said.
Peel’s league side wasn’t the only team to enjoy big wins on the day, with the reserves and youth girls both remaining undefeated.
Anyssa Hardy nailed five goals to keep the reserves’ unblemished record in tact, with the team notching a 13.15 (93) to 0.1 (1) win over the Angels, while the youth girls continue to lead the chase for the Rogers Cup with a 13.12 (90) to 0.4 (4) drubbing.
Jacklyn Atkinson and Bethlyn Pasco both nailed three majors in the victory.
The youth girls will put their undefeated streak on the line when they travel to face the 7-1 South Fremantle this week.
The two sides met in a fierce battle less than a month ago, with Peel taking a two-point win.
Their clash kicks off at Fremantle Oval at 10.30am, with the reserves to follow.
The league will play the day before, with their bounce down scheduled for Saturday, 5pm at Fremantle Oval.
Justin Rake
Sports journalist for the Mandurah Mail, Australian Community Media, Fairfax Media.
Sports journalist for the Mandurah Mail, Australian Community Media, Fairfax Media.
