Report cards: Grading every club's Dudley Tuckey Cup campaign

It was no doubt the most challenging year since the league's inception in the early 1990s.

The regular season was postponed amid the pandemic in March, and as time went by it was looking increasingly unlikely that we would see any local footy played in 2020.

Eventually the PFNL season was officially canned, but as restrictions eased the league invented the Dudley Tuckey Cup - a shortened, one-off campaign comprising of five clubs, with Pinjarra, Mandurah and Waroona opting out.

Below, we glance at the highs and lows of each club's season and hand them our official grading.

Undefeated and crowned premiers in the most thrilling fashion - it was a dream run for the Rams. From Haydn Matthews and Kyle Havelberg combining in the midfield, to Nathan Anderson's dominance in front of goal, just about everything went right for the champs.

High point

Has to be Zayne Selkirk's kick to win the flag, right? The young stud put boot to ball with just seconds remaining and, with their hearts in their mouths, Rams fans watched it sail through the goals. Amazing to see a whole (well, half of a) season come down to just one kick.

Low point

Umm... let's just move on.

Looking forward to...

Repeating next year. While the Rams will no doubt be lapping up their victory over the course of the summer, the harsh reality is that it "technically" didn't count as a PFNL premiership, so their drought "technically" still spans back to 1997. They will be in a good spot to rectify this should a normal season play out in 2021.

Overall grade

A+. How else do you grade an undefeated season?

God it was fun to watch the Falcons this season. Fast-paced, talented, physical - this team was exciting. Their long-term vision of the past three or so years looks to be coming to fruition as their young players take on more responsibility, and they've definitely lifted themselves after a rare wooden spoon finish in 2019.

High point

The sensible thing to do here would be to write about the Falcons' thrilling comeback win over Baldivis in the preliminary final, but if I'm being honest, their grand final effort was the high point of South Mandurah's campaign. Let's be real - this is a game where absolutely NO ONE expected them to win. But this team has heart. They fought and scrapped and in the end they were just seconds away from one of the great grand final victories.

Low point

Their loss to Centrals in round eight was a stinker in an otherwise heavenly-scented season. Leading by 16 points at three quarter time, the Falcons allowed the Blues to score five goals in the final term as they watched what seemed a comfortable win slip through their fingers. Didn't help that star forward Cody Nelson sat out most of the game with two yellow cards.

Looking forward to...

More from this young midfield. They gave Souths fans plenty to enjoy about 2020, but the likes of Zac Moody, Cameron Gavin, Kyren Gavin and Riley Steinbock are still trending upwards and have plenty of footy ahead of them. Should they keep the nucleus of this young team together, the future is bright.

Overall grade

A. From dead last to being seconds away from a title - you have to be happy with that.

Odd year for the Brumbies. Entering as reigning champs, Baldivis lost a handful of premiership midfielders as Brendan Tingey, Emmanuel Collard and James Russell departed the club. Still, they found a way to compete, with Josh Branchi and Aden Field among the stars.

High point

It was a goal-fest for Baldivis in round five, as they smashed Halls Head to the tune of 132 points. Blaine Johnson and Ben Higgs booted six apiece, Jarrad Heal snared four and Josh Branchi three as they compiled a staggering 25.20 (170) score. Imagine if they kicked a little straighter...

Low point

Their collapse in the fourth quarter of the preliminary final against South Mandurah was deflating. They held a 13-point lead 15 minutes into the last but let the Falcons bag three goals in eight minutes to snatch victory from their hands.

Looking forward to...

More from Josh Branchi? The Brumbies' midfielders can breathe easy for as long as the star ruckman continues to give them silver service.

Grade

B-. A preliminary final is still nothing to sneeze at, particularly after losing your entire premiership-winning midfield.

The Blues will take a fair bit of momentum out of how they ended their year. Two wins from their final three home-and-away games before pushing Baldivis to the brink in an elimination final gives them plenty to go off.

High point

Most games this year went to script, but Centrals beating South Mandurah in round eight turned out to be the upset of the season. Trailing by just under three goals with a quarter to go, the Blues conjured five goals in the fourth term to take a win in what was a heated encounter.

Low point

Round two wasn't overly kind to the Blues. You always want to start the season off strong, but a 103-point whipping from Baldivis in your opening game (after a bye in round one) is, well, less than ideal.

Looking forward to...

Hitting the reset button in 2021. Centrals would have been feeling alright about themselves last summer, but they lost a handful of would-be recruits to the pandemic and will be eager to reset and hit the ground running next year.

Grade

C+. Finished the year strong, but copped a few beltings early on.

Winless on the year, the Lightning would have been kicking themselves after they dropped a golden chance to cause an upset over Baldivis in round 10. But for all the negative results, it's actually quite easy to find some positives in this team, particularly with the performances of some of their younger players.

High point

While they didn't get the chocolates in their final game, that clash against Baldivis was Halls Head showing some character. Belted by 83 points against Mundijong the week before, it appeared the Lightning had already packed it in for 2020, but they dug deep and booted five goals in their final quarter of the season to give a top-three side a run for their money.

Low point

It wasn't their largest loss of the season, but Halls Head would have been hoping for better in that round nine meet against Centrals. At the time it seemed their last realistic opportunity for a win and they were comprehensively beaten.

Looking forward to...

A combination of young stars like Liam Lockley, Bailey Hall and Travis Sexton moving the club into the future. The three young guns have shown they are already capable, and now it's just about progression. Hanging on to young talent like this will be key if Halls Head want to climb the ladder.

Grade

C. The Lightning wanted to use the Dudley Tuckey Cup as a way to expose young players to league footy in 2020, and they accomplished that. They took some dismal losses along the way, but I think they will still be happy with the direction they're headed.