From Eighth to where?
Premier League Preview 3 In this edition of the Premier League Preview we look at the teams who just avoided demotion last year by finishing in eighth spot. Can these teams move up the ladder and mount a finals challenge or will they be destined to remain a middle of the road side. Let’s have a look at South Perth (Men’s) and Leeming (Women’s) teams for 2018-19 season.
Note: Ins and Outs are based on available knowledge when published and may change prior to round 1.
South Perth
Ins: Vinny Santostefano (Claremont), David Downey (South Perth), Mitch Cranswick (South Perth), Justin Opie (Bassendean), Tom Reid (Vic Park), Beau Manton (Bassendean)
Outs: Matt McEwen (North Perth), Daniel Penman (Unavailable), Ross Bresland (Unavailable)
First 9 Fixtures: OP (A) Mor (H) Kard (A) Cam (H) Bass (A) DV (H) Warn (A) Mann (A) Sorr (H)
A big recruiting spree may well see South Perth move up the ladder from their disappointing 2017/18 season. The Millers biggest recruit has to be Justin Opie. The 1997 Rosenthal Medallist has been one of the better skippers in Premier League for some time now and will add real strength to their back end. His recruitment will help offset the losses of Ross Bresland and Dan Penman who are unavailable this season. South Perth have also brought in some good developing talent. David Downey was a star under 18 while Mitch Cranswick is the current State Singles runner-up. Beau Manton as well gets better and better every year and is a very solid player who can play multiple positions. A couple more in Reid and Santostefano have Premier League experience and will at least go close to making the side. Given the influx of players and the extra depth it brings the Millers look well placed for the coming season.
South Perth get a lot of difficult trips out of the way in the first half of the season. This could help them adopt their usual style of storming home in the backend of the season. The Millers play two of last year’s finalists away in the first nine games as well as tough trips to Kardinya and Warnbro. While they still have very difficult games in the back end of the year having those out of the way early could see a lot flurry. If South Perth get through to Christmas and are still well and truly in the hunt, then they’ll have everybody looking over their shoulders.
Classification: Premiership Contender
It’s a big leap to go from eight to winning a flag but the Millers look capable. They look to strong through every line and are one of the few teams that can say they have definitely improved. That improvement won’t only come from outside but also from within with several players continuing to get better. A good late run with five home games should see them finish strong and they’re a side that will be a chance in every game they play. Finals is the minimum standard that this group should be held to.
Leeming
Ins: Helene Thurston (Mosman Park)
Outs: None
First 9 Fixtures: Mun (H) Gos (A) Sorr (H) MP (A) SB (H) NB (H) Mann (A) VP (H) OP (A)
It’s all been fairly quiet at Leeming over the off-season as they look to keep this long run in Premier League going for another year. After being up and down for a number of years they have stabilised as a staple of the Premier League for a number of years now and even flirted with finals at one point. Just the one change looks likely this season. Helene Thurston crosses over from Mosman Park having played Premier League there over many seasons in the past. Leeming are traditionally a very stable group, rarely gaining or losing any top players and this year sees them continue an approach which has worked for them. You get the feeling they are still missing that extra something that could propel them up the table though. The current group though has showed themselves to be a solid Premier League side though and with a little bit of improvement from within the side Leeming could be every chance to move up at least a couple of places.
Leeming will want to get their work done early as they face a very tough finish to the season. Their final six games couldn’t be too much tougher. They’ll play all of Mosman, North Beach, Manning and Osborne Park in that time, all of whom should be in finals contention. They’ll also have a trip to Safety Bay where many a side has struggled in the past. Perhaps they won’t be quite as worried about the reigning premier as most though given their excellent record against Manning. Behind Manning themselves Leeming are probably the most disappointed to see Manning 2 demoted. Leeming will also be hoping to bank on solid home form, with their 40 metre synthetic potentially presenting a handful to opposition clubs.
Classification: Demotion Fighter
This classification could well turn out to be completely false as Leeming haven’t been too troubled in recent years, but history tells us they generally aren’t miles above the relegated sides and last year’s eighth placed finish is testament to that. This side has the potential to push into mid-table and should probably be okay, but it may not be too comfortable. They’ll be in the pack at the bottom half of the table again and can’t afford to drop too many opportunities against the other sides in the pack. Especially at home.
