1998 Westar Rules Grand Final

The 1998 Westar Rules Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between East Fremantle and West Perth on Sunday, 20 September 1998, at Subiaco Oval in Perth, Western Australia to determine the premier team of Westar Rules for the 1998 season. East Fremantle won convincingly by forty-three points, 20.10 (130) to 13.9 (87), taking out their twenty-ninth premiership but their last as of 2018.

In the process, the Sharks achieved their sixteenth consecutive win, having lost during the season only to Claremont and Subiaco in their fifth and sixth matches. It constituted the most consecutive wins ending in a Westar/WAFL/WANFL premiership since East Fremantle had achieved a unique undefeated season in 1946. After the game Shark coach Tony Micale said that the 1998 team must rank as one of the greatest in East Fremantle history.[1]

East Fremantle and West Perth had completely dominated the season, finishing five games and over fifty-eight percent clear of their nearest rivals for the premiership, but the Sharks showed their superiority in the second semi-final by holding the Falcons to three goals in completely fine conditions[2] and West Perth only overcame Subiaco in the preliminary due to a brilliant solo goal from Neil Mildenhall,[3] so East Fremantle entered as hot favourites with odds of 1/4 to win their third premiership of the 1990s.[4]

As it turned out, despite major injuries to Leigh Willison, Wayne Roser and Steve O‘Brien, East Fremantle were, after kicking into a wind in the opening quarter, always ahead of the Falcons.[5] They kicked the first three goals and at no point did West Perth get closer than the ten-point quarter time margin. Three successive goals early in the third quarter were responded to by the Falcons, but late in that period the Sharks kicked four goals without reply to be thirty-eight points ahead and West Perth coach John Dimmer knew then his team would lose.[6]

Adrian Bromage (East Fremantle) won the Simpson Medal as best on ground, completing a rare double of winning the Sandover Medal and Simpson Medal in the same season.[7][8]

Teams

East Fremantle
FB:Jon StaggJohn KerrScott Spalding
HB:Marshall StockdenGreg MadiganMichael Collica
C:Gary DhurrkayMartin MellodyChris Pobjoy
HF:Steve O‘BrienEarl SpaldingStephen Bilcich
FF:Clint KireyDamien CondonLeigh Willison
R:Greg EganAdrian BromageWayne Roser
I:Matthew ClucasJustin SandersRhett Bowden
Coach:Tony Micale

West Perth
FB:Luke RaynerRyan WebbDigby Morrell
HB:Paul MifkaBrendon BarrowsPeter Julian
C:Darren O‘BrienKim RigollCallum Chambers
HF:Christian KellyDean BruntonAndrew Williams
FF:Heath YounieTroy WilsonCorey Johnson
R:Ron SkenderBrendon LoganBryce Steel
I:Neil MildenhallSteve TrewhellaChris Rigoll
Coach:John Dimmer

Match Details
1998 Westar Rules Grand Final
Sunday, 20 September East Fremantle def. West Perth Subiaco Oval (crowd: 23,258)
4.1 (25)
7.4 (46)
14.7 (91)
 20.10 (130)		 Q1
Q2
Q3
 Final		 2.3 (15)
5.5 (35)
8.5 (53)
 13.9 (87)		 Umpires: Adam Binks, Wayne French, Simon Gill
Simpson Medal: Adrian Bromage (East Fremantle)
Condon 4
Bilcich, Egan 3
Dhurrkay 2
Roser, Clucas, Kirey, E. Spalding, O‘Brien, Willison, Bromage, Pobjoy 1		 Goals 5 Brunton
4 Logan
2 Williams
1 Johnson, Darren O‘Brien
Bromage, Bilcich, Condon, Sanders, Collica, Stagg Best Barrows, Brunton, Rayner, Skender, Logan, Wilson
Willison (ankle)
Roser (thigh)
S. O‘Brien (knee)
Madigan (ankle)
Bowden (ankle)		 Injuries
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References
  1. Reid, Russell; “Sharks Up With Best”; in The Game, p. 3; from The West Australian, 21 September 1998
  2. Perth Metro (Mount Lawley) September 1998 rainfall
  3. Lague, Steve; “Falcons Swoop at the Death”; in The Game, p. 11; from The West Australian, 14 September 1998
  4. Lague, Steve; “Sharks Red-Hot Favourites”; in The West Australian, 19 September 1998, p. 117
  5. Stocks, Gary; “Champion Sharks Bury the Torment”; in The West Australian, 21 September 1998; p. 72
  6. Lague, Steve; “Injured Fill Interchange Bench Early”; in The Game, p. 3; from The West Australian, 21 September 1998
  7. "Grand Final - 1998 - League". WAFL Online. West Australian Football Commission. Retrieved 1 October 2012.
  8. "Simpson Medalists". WAFL Online. West Australian Football League. Retrieved 1 October 2012.
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