South West AFLW Watch: Dana East claims bragging rights over Ella Roberts and Beth Schilling in western derby

Manjimup’s Dana East maintained bragging rights over Margaret River’s Ella Roberts and Bunbury’s Beth Schilling as Fremantle continued their perfect record in AFLW western derbies with a 23-point win over West Coast on Saturday. In a game which was played in front of more than 6000 fans at Sullivan Logistics Stadium — the second-largest crowd of the season — the Dockers rode a strong start to a 5.5 (35) to 1.6 (12) victory over the Eagles, who were left to rue some missed opportunities in front of goal. The Dockers have now won all seven editions of the AFLW derby, dating back to when their cross-town rivals entered the competition in 2020. In a Fremantle midfield which was again without injured vice-captain Hayley Miller, the 22-year-old East played her part when the ball was up for grabs, winning six clearances and applying five tackles. Roberts, who was tagged by Docker Jess Low, was below her brilliant best but still had an influence on the game with 16 disposals and seven tackles, while Schilling had four intercepts among her six disposals and laid four tackles. The sixth-placed Dockers are in great shape to return to the finals for the first time since 2022, needing to win only one of their remaining two games over bottom four sides Western Bulldogs and Greater Western Sydney to lock in their top eight place. Meanwhile, 11th-placed West Coast — who have lost their past three games after winning four of their first six — will face a much tougher task as they look to feature in the finals for the first time, sitting one win adrift of the top eight with a sizeable percentage gap. The game was played as part of WA’s biggest charity event Telethon, with AFL executive general manager of football Laura Kane telling News Corp she would like to see the pair continue their association going forward.