SWFL 2022: Tom Gorter, Kevin Chitty and Hayden Krikke among the stars going under the radar at South Bunbury

Sometimes in football you need to take your team on the road and get the job done in a game you are expected to win. It is what separates good teams and great teams, and on Sunday in Collie, South Bunbury showed that they are on track to be a great team. Their thumping win was their third of the season, their second straight away from home, and came on a day of torrential rain, but their key forward still kicked nine goals. Things could hardly be going much better. The incredible haul from Jordan Strahan, whose contested marking ability remains the best in the competition, took his tally for the season to 18. Jace Cormack, the former Hayward Medal winner who came to the club from Donnybrook in the off-season and former Fremantle Docker Jesse Crichton are already putting together sensational years as well, but it is the incredible squad depth and the players towards the bottom of the list that are having a massive impact. Incredibly, former West Coast Eagles listed player Tom Gorter is still the Tigers’ must underrated player outside the club. The half-back general is the best user of the football in the competition, wins most of his one-on-ones when required and is his midfield’s eyes from behind. But he didn’t poll a single Hayward vote last season. The unheralded star of the club’s midfield group is new club captain Kevin Chitty. Through the first two games of the season, resounding wins against Harvey-Brunswick-Leschenault and Busselton, Chitty attended more centre bounces than Crichton and Cormack — the only player to do so. The midfield additions have done little to stunt the development of the Tigers’ next generation either, with Ethan Nordahl, who was the break-out player of season 2021, getting his best midfield run of the season against the Eagles, which came after missing the first game because of COVID-19. It meant Jesse Crichton spent large parts of Saturday’s wet weather contest playing forward, where he kicked four goals. Hayden Krikke, the former Souths junior who returned to the club after a successful stint in the Perth Football League, has been more than productive forward while contributing in bursts in midfield and Kade Wallrodt kicked back-to-back goals in both of the first two games. Cormack might be having a Hayward-standard season, possibly his best ever, Tim Sutherland is dominating the ruck and Strahan looks unstoppable, but it is not just the big names carrying South Bunbury through the first week.