WEST Coast youngster Dom Sheed has shone brightly for the Eagles' affiliate East Perth in the WAFL.

Sheed was dropped after making his AFL debut in round one, but is sure to push for selection in round three after he gathered 23 touches, with six forward 50 entries and two goals in the Royals' 18-point win over Swan Districts.

Sam Butler was among East Perth's best and had 24 disposals to stake his claim for an AFL return, while 203cm ruckman Scott Lycett won 26 hit-outs and kicked a goal from his 16 possessions.

Fraser McInnes booted three goals, while Ashley Smith (19 possessions), Patrick McGinnity (18) and Will Schofield (16) were influential.

Small forward Josh Hill booted one major from only eight touches.

Fremantle's aligned club, Peel Thunder, had the bye in round two.

Meanwhile, Karmichael Hunt has responded in superb fashion to Gold Coast coach Guy McKenna saying he is not in the Suns' best 22.

The code-hopper booted three goals and was named in the Suns' bests in their 30-point NEAFL loss to Southport.

Alex Sexton was the Suns' best, with the 20-year-old utility booting two goals.

Luke Russell, Jackson Allen, rookie Josh Hall and Tom Murphy were also among the best in the first round match.

The Brisbane Lions and Sydney Swans' reserves teams clash on Sunday afternoon.

In South Australia, Port Adelaide won its SANFL practice match over North Adelaide by 35 points, while the Crows' new team lost to South Adelaide by three goals.

Former senior listed Crow Ian Callinan booted four goals for Adelaide, while Jarryd Lyons and rookie Jack Osborn added two each.

The SANFL season kicks-off on Thursday night when Norwood hosts Port Adelaide.

 

The Bombers forward played his first game since injuring his hamstring in the NAB Challenge and got through the contest well, playing three quarters before sitting out the last term.

 

The 29-year-old kicked three goals and set up plenty of other opportunities in Essendon's two-point defeat to Richmond's VFL side in a practice match at Tullamarine.

 

He played predominantly as a deep forward with short stints further up the ground, and said post-game he has targeted a senior comeback against Carlton next Sunday.

 

"I hope to be back but it just depends how I pull up, but I got through absolutely fine and my legs feel fine now," Winderlich said.

 

"I probably could have played last night [in Essendon's loss to Hawthorn] but I spoke to (coach) 'Bomber' [Thompson] on Wednesday and asked if I could have a run in the VFL first to get a bit of confidence."

 

Winderlich, who has battled soft-tissue injuries since his knee reconstruction at the start of 2011, said the opportunity to play VFL helped ease him into playing again. 

 

"The club were great and let me play today and now hopefully I can play seniors next week," he said.

 

Essendon's VFL coach Hayden Skipworth praised Winderlich, who also provided strong leadership to a group of younger forwards throughout the contest.

"He presented well and shared the ball. He could have had four or five shots at goal but passed them off, and he created a lot of scoring opportunities for us," Skipworth said.

"He was running flat out and didn't look restricted at all. Jason will no doubt be spoken about at match committee (for next week's game against Carlton) but whether he plays, that's not my call."

The Bombers have been reluctant to push Courtenay Dempsey into senior football after an interrupted pre-season but he too sahowed excellent signs for the majority of the game with dash off half-back.

Dempsey left the field midway through the final quarter after two long goals and didn't return, although Skipworth said the important Bomber had reached his prescribed game-time.

"As far as I know he was all good," Skipworth said.

Jake Melksham will return to the senior side next week after serving his two-week suspension and played well against the Tigers, while Leroy Jetta kicked five goals. Rookie ruckman Fraser Thurlow, who may come into contention against the Blues after Paddy Ryder's ankle injury, worked hard.

"Fraser's lucky in a sense that he has played in the NAB Challenge games and has had a little bit of a taste of AFL level, the intensity is different, but I'm sure he will also be discussed in match committee," Skipworth said.

 

Mature-aged recruit Sam Lloyd kicked two goals, while the Tigers' first pick at last year's draft, Ben Lennon, played well across half-back in the first half before sitting out most of the second half.

 

Twitter: @AFL_CalTwomey