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Three rounds have been played so far, a total of 15 games. Of those, 12 have been lost by a margin of 12 points or less (ok, I might be slightly out on that, I'm going on memory, but it's pretty close) and three have been won by more than 12 points, two of those by Nedlands, the only undefeated team.
I must say that the ladder as it stands at the moment is (apart from Neddies) is a complete inversion of what I and most of the aficionados I spoke to anticipated.
But is that really where they'll all be at the end of round nine?
Other than to be certain that Nedlands will be in the mix, it will take a brave man to make a prediction. Neddies have taken apart Cottesloe and Associates and that counts for something, but what about the rest?
Let's analyse.
Associates and Cottesloe. Both clubs rely heavily on their Force and Academy players, but for how long can they? Cott have pissed off a lot of regular past first grade players (about 4 or more to Nedlands alone) because of selection policies. Soaks have been less crass in that department, but have little to show for their recruiting efforts since last season and have lost a star in Zac Holmes. Soaks reserves are in seventh place. How long can either club be competitive when the Force heroes run to the Eastern States once the Super 15s season is over and they are offered $500 or more a game to play there, tax free? What depth and loyalty will they have to rely on?
Wests, Wanneroo and Rockingham. No depth. A few injuries and they are cactus. Their reserves have yet to win a game and languish equally at the bottom of the table. Wests won against Palmyra by a few points only because a bank of lights failed with 10 minutes of the game left, Palmyra having just scored two tries in five minutes and being five metres from the line with the ball in hand. Good luck with that, but don't count on it happening again in our lifetime.
Perth and Kalamunda. Something in the water there. No name recruits, no numbers, yet they have both their firsts and reserves well at the top of their tables. Kala lost to Perth and Perth lost to Wanneroo. There is little logic that can be applied. Maybe just lucky. Maybe great combinations. But great to see, and let's hope it lasts.
University and Palmyra. Pally lost to Wests and Soaks. Uni lost to Nedlands and Kala.
Despite their bottom half of the ladder positions (Pally second last), they have shown some mettle, Uni being competitive against Nedlands, and Palmyra having a tad of bad luck along the way. Pally have good depth in their seconds (currently top of the ladder in that grade), and if it comes down to a matter of player attrition, they may hold a slight advantage over most others.
So the assessment has to be - it's still wide open, and we'll see quite a few close games yet. We haven't reached the stage that the standard of refereeing has become a critical factor, but no doubt we will.