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Royals hungry for redemption

Rhys Dickinson  August 10, 2017 3:00 PM Fraser McInnes says East Perth is ready to take it up to Swan Districts on Saturday


Fraser McInnes says history will count for little when East Perth goes to battle with Swan Districts on Saturday.

The Swans have defeated the Royals by 10 and 26 points during their two previous encounters this year, but McInnes believes his side has the will and form to get one back against the ‘Black Ducks’ this weekend.

“They’ve beaten us twice this year, but I think we are probably playing the best footy of the year at the moment,” McInnes said.

“We probably won’t look back too much on our previous games in preparation for the weekend; we’ll probably have a look at what we’ve been doing the past couple of weeks and work off that. We’re really excited about the challenges ahead.”

East Perth has reason to be confident after registering its biggest win of the year against West Perth last Saturday.

The Royals bounced back from a lacklustre first quarter to kick 15 straight goals and notch an emphatic 84-point victory over their archenemies.

“It was a bit of a sluggish start and we gifted them a few goals following turnovers, but after quarter time we sorted it out and played three strong quarters,” McInnes said.

“We pressured the game really well and we were able to turn the ball over in our half and keep it in there. We just kept pumping them on the scoreboard. There were some really pleasing signs there, especially for this time of the year.”

McInnes played a big part in the win.

The 197cm, 96kg tall amassed 21 disposals, eight marks, six contested possessions, four inside 50s. three effective tackles and two goals at HBF Arena.

“I was pleased with some of my efforts,” McInnes said.

“I thought I had a reasonably well-rounded game playing that forward-ruck role that I’ve been doing for the majority of the year.

“Some of the other tall boys tore it up too. It was good getting Vards (Nathan Vardy) in the team. He gave us a really good contest in the forward 50. Scott Jones, in the absence of Gilesy, gave the mids a good look in the guts and we got it in our forward half, created a contest and hit the scoreboard hard, which was good to see.”

McInnes also sang the praises of Eagles teammate Jake Waterman, who gathered 19 disposals, clunked seven marks and kicked two goals in his East Perth league debut.

“Jake’s a natural forward; it’s good to get someone into the team that can play the bulk of his time up there,” McInnes said.

“He was good in the air and got some goals as a reward. I hope he can finish off the year really well and have some impact.”