GFL licking their wounds after winless campaign at country series

Goldfields Football League’s pursuit of an elusive division 1 crown at the annual Nutrien Ag Solutions country championships in Perth has been sent back to the drawing board after a winless campaign ended with the side’s relegation from the top grade for the 2027 series.

After defeats against Avon and Great Southern on Friday to open the carnival, Goldfields on Saturday were dealt losses against Peel and South West, by margins of 29 points and 57 points, respectively.

GFL coach Bill Hansen said the team’s fifth place and relegation was a big disappointment for everyone who made the trip.

“It’s bit of a kick in the nuts, to be honest because this (planning) had been a 12-month process for us,” Hansen said.

“And unfortunately, we’ve ended up where we are.

“We talked afterwards about where we might have fallen down — the enthusiasm and the effort from the boys was top-notch and fitness-wise, these guys can run out four quarters, there’s no issues there.

“But we did lack firepower up front — when you’re looking at players the calibre of Sam Stubbs and Jordon Reid and others, who were unavailable through injury, (and) our structures went out of whack.

“In saying that, we had guys like young Charlie Scafidi who led the way for us, and he learned quite a lot over the weekend.”

The upside, Hansen said, was that the tough lessons learned would be brought back, and applied by each player, at club level.

“You talk to the younger players who hadn’t made the trip before, and this is the type of environment where you can learn a lot because a lot of them (opposition players) have played in the WAFL, or at least been listed,” he said.

“The best way to describe it (the division 1 standard) is that it’s like playing in a grand final, when the pressure is really hot in that first hour.

“‘Well, it’s like that for every game against the very best from each (regional) competition.

“It’s top-quality.”

Goldfields’ lone division 1 triumph was in 1992.

Since then, the GFL’s degree of lower grade dominance has generally not translated to the top division.

An exception was in 2019 when the GFL made the division 1 final but were beaten by Upper Great Southern.

Goldfields earned promotion that season after being crowned the 2018 division 2 champions.

The 2020 and 2021 carnivals were cancelled because of COVID-19 and when it resumed in 2022 the GFL were winless in division 1.

With Rob Hansen at the helm, the local team bounced back in 2023 to be crowned division 2 champions after winning the final against Great Northern by 15 points.

A return to division 1 in 2024 yielded a credible two wins under Aaron Sweet and Bill Hansen last year also led the GFL to two wins.

Division 1 ladder:

South-West (4-0) 16 points; Peel (3-1) 12; Great Southern (2-2) 8; Avon (1-3) 4; GFL (0-4) 0.

Results:

Day one:

Avon 7.2 (44) d Goldfields 4.5 (29)

Best — Avon: Tom Lee, Ben Rushforth, Traye Bennell, Goldfields: Zak Barrett, Alec Johnson, Bailey Norris, Callum Johnson, Goals — Avon: Tom Lee 4, Hamish McFarlane, Corey Dixon, Marshall Jones; Goldfields: Jake George 2, Josh Clements, Charlie Scafidi.

Great Southern 7.5 (47) d Goldfields 3.7 (25)

Best — Great Southern: Ryley Valli, Steven Edwards, Bodhi Stubber, Ryan Davies; Goldfields: Koopah Tood, Zak Barrett, Ethan Bentley, Alec Johnson. Goals — Great Southern: James Charlesworth 2, Camball McMahon, Jayden Woods, Isaac Bauum, Ryley Balli, Jayden Scott; Goldfields: Josh Clements, Amar Elnour, Zachary Barrett.

Day two:

Peel 6.7 (43) d Goldfields 2.2 (14).

Best — Peel: Tyrone Thorne, Tye Kemp, Michael Randall, Brett Hill; Goldfields: Jorden Hooks, Alec Johnson, Alijaah Evans, Zak Barrett. Goals — Peel: Tye Kemp 2, Tyrone Thorne, Brett Hill, Michael Stevens, unknown; Goldfields: Koopah Todd, Brock Deinobili.

South West 12.3 (75) d Goldfields 2.6 (18).

Best — South West: Jason Carter, Liam Creighton, Connor Carbone, Jaxon Bell, Caleb Stevens; Goldfields: Koopah Todd, Callum Johnson, Alec Johnson, Alijaah Evans. Goals — South West: Liam Creighton 3, Zac Trigwell 3, Baiden Parsons 2, Bailey Sanford, Kade Wallrodt, Jack Fletcher, Jason Carter; Goldfields: Koopah Todd, Josh Clements.