A handshake and a pat on the back: Andrew Brayshaw faces Gaff on field again
Andrew Gaff and Andrew Brayshaw put on a public show of reconciliation before West Coast put Fremantle to the sword in a 51-point pre-season win in Mandurah.
Gaff was given an eight-week suspension last year for his punch that broke Brayshaw’s jaw. Sunday’s match was the first clash between the pair since that fiery western derby, and they put on a public show of peace by shaking hands and patting each other on the back before bouncedown.
Fremantle opened up a 21-point lead late in the first quarter, and still led by 16 points midway through the second term but West Coast turned the game on its head with nine-straight goals to secure the 16.13 (109) to 8.10 (58) win in front of 8,047 fans at Rushton Park.
The Dockers struggled in the midfield without skipper Nat Fyfe (elbow), with the Eagles winning the stoppage battle 55-27. West Coast won the centre clearances 18-5, despite losing the overall hit-out tally of 50-36 but both teams ended the match with injury concerns.
West Coast defender Brad Sheppard came off in the second term after copping a heavy cork to his right knee. Fremantle swingman Brennan Cox injured his left hamstring in the first quarter, while Brad Hill suffered a cork to his left calf. And forward Matt Taberner suffered a leg injury in the curtain raiser game and will need to undergo scans.
Prized Dockers recruit Jesse Hogan was solid despite a lack of quality supply, the former Demon finishing with 19 disposals and one goal. Brayshaw continued his strong pre-season with 22 disposals and former Tiger Reece Conca (26) was also prolific in his first match for Fremantle.
West Coast’s grand final hero Dom Sheed followed up his 39-disposal effort against Geelong with 40 possessions and one goal against the Dockers, while Willie Rioli booted four goals from 19 disposals.
Gaff tallied just 16 disposals, but Eagles coach Adam Simpson said it was good for the star midfielder to get his meeting with Brayshaw out of the way. “I think it was just good to get the game out of the way from both clubs point of view. We’ve all moved on,” Simpson said.
Fremantle coach Ross Lyon said his team needed to learn from the loss. “I was pleased with the first half, but I didn’t see the third quarter coming,” Lyon said. “We got comprehensively beaten around the ball.”