Claremont, the reigning premiers, finished the home-and-away rounds on top of the ladder with 15 wins and a large percentage. The Tigers advanced directly to the Grand Final after defeating Swan Districts in the Second Semi-final.
East Fremantle finished third at the end of the home-and-away rounds with 14 wins. The Sharks defeated East Perth in the First Semi-final and then Swan Districts in the Preliminary Final to advance to the Grand Final. This was the first time the Sharks had made it to the Grand Final since 2000, and their most recent Grand Final victory was in 1998.
In the lead-up to the Grand Final, Claremont captain Andrew Browne failed a fitness test on his injured left hamstring, and deputy Luke Blackwell was appointed to lead the side.[2]
East Fremantle closed to within one point at the start of the final quarter when Young kicked his second,[2] but Claremont managed to steady and kick five of the last six goals to run out comfortable winners in the end.
The defeat was especially bitter for the Sharks as, for the second time since 2000, they lost Grand Finals in all three grades; they had lost earlier to Claremont in the Reserves, and were defeated for the Colts premiership by South Fremantle.[1]
