Month: October 2020

1990 Rewind: Exhausted Eagles Bow Out

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Travel Load Catches Up With Young Eagles

West Coast’s 1990 campaign fizzled out to a 63 point defeat against Essendon in the Preliminary Final, with the Bombers progressing to face Collingwood in the Grand Final.

Four consecutive matches at Waverley Park, and six interstate trips in a row, finally caught up with the young Eagles line-up, as they battled injury, illness and air strikes in the lead up to the match.

The Eagles were again forced to compromise their travel plans amid the ongoing national air strikes that had plagued much of their travelling over the previous six weeks.

West Coast ventured to Melbourne on a chartered flight, sharing the trip with the Perth Wildcats and Melbourne Tigers who were in the middle of their NBL Grand Final series. The trip required several stops along the way, and saw the three teams land in Melbourne on the Thursday – a day earlier than the Eagles’ usual schedule.

There were also concerns at the selection table.

Dwayne Lamb was unavailable, courtesy of a one week ban from the AFL tribunal, while nuggety midfielder Scott Watters was ruled out with a groin complaint.

Chris Mainwaring was struggling with a knee issue, Guy McKenna was racing the clock after injuring his arm late against the Demons and Laurie Keene was managing a groin injury. Craig Turley – who had been the Eagles best player over the prior fortnight – hadn’t trained all week due to the flu.

All four would take their place, but only Mainwaring would be a serviceable contributor.

Peter Melesso and Dean Turner were the two replacements for Lamb and Watters, with the selection of Turner somewhat of a surprise. Turner earned selection ahead of captain Steve Malaxos, who was left out of the side for a second week, as well as Don Pyke and Phil Narkle who had both been favoured to be included in the side.

Melesso was named after serving a five match suspension, but would then be a late withdrawal. Melesso took part in the warm-up ahead of the match, before being replaced by Todd Breman.

West Coast started the brighter of the two sides, but despite controlling possession struggled to find a way past half forward. Simon Madden, who had been heavily criticised during the week after a poor showing against the Magpies in the semi-final, was dominant both in the ruck and as the spare man in defence clogging up the space of the Eagle forwards.

Madden tallied 10 disposals and five marks for the term, as well as booting Essendon’s fourth goal of after a strong mark over Phil Scott in the goal square. The Eagles had just one major for the quarter; a solo effort from Mainwaring when he intercepted a defensive kick in the Eagles forward 50m area, before kicking truly on the run.

Stevan Jackson was busy early and finished with three goals

The quarter time deficit of 17 points was soon 43 as Essendon made West Coast pay for some sloppy play. Craig Turley started the rot when he dropped a simple mark in the middle of the ground, allowing the Bombers to regain possession with Darren Bewick finishing off a chain of play.

Alan Ezard then capitalised after the Eagles turned the ball over at half back before Simon Madden was able to boot his second of the match when John Worsfold was unable to handle the ball in defence.

Gary O’Donnell missed a golden opportunity, hitting the post running into an open goal, before Essendon caught a lucky break to boot their fourth major of the quarter. A scrappy kick forward by Derek Kickett eluded Phil Scott as he led Paul Salmon to the ball, allowing the Bomber full forward to hand off to Mark Harvey for a simple finish.

At this point, nothing was going right for West Coast.

Guy McKenna had copped a heavy hit that left him with a bloodied nose to along with the arm injury he was carrying, while Chris Mainwaring and Mark Harvey were involved in a brutal head clash that left both players on the ground for several minutes.

Finally, the Eagles found their second goal of the match. While they had been outplayed in most areas on the ground, the one spot they were winning was the centre clearances, even with Laurie Keene restricted.

Some good work out of the middle ended with Brett Heady steering through a second goal on his left foot from half forward, with the Eagles able to boot three more to give them an outside chance of victory.

However, a horrible handpass by Todd Breman deep in the Eagles defence gifted Ezard his second major of the quarter and the Bombers held a six goal lead at the main break.

Things only got harder straight after the restart when Karl Langdon was carted off after being knocked out cold in an accidental clash with Terry Daniher. Langdon attempted a diving mark, running back with the flight of the ball, with Daniher’s hip collecting Langdon in the head. With Keene also done for the day, the Eagles were without a bench, with a half to play and six goals behind.

Still, they refused to give up the fight. West Coast were the better side for much of the third term, with the play almost completely in their forward line. Essendon couldn’t find a way out of defence as West Coast continually pumped the ball into their forward 50, but they couldn’t make it count on the scoreboard.

Peter Sumich kicked the Eagles first goal, but then missed two more set shots, before Stevan Jackson hit the post from close range, and then Tony Begovich missed from directly in front after receiving a 50m penalty.

Mainwaring had a chance that failed to score, as did Michael Brennan, whose long range shot was marked on the line by Ezard. Sumich had a third chance that sailed out of bounds and for all their dominance, the Eagles had posted just 1.5 for the quarter.

Dean Turner then best exemplified the Eagles’ frustration when he cannoned into Ezard, well after the Bomber forward had taken a running shot on goal. Ezard’s effort missed, but the umpire awarded a second shot following Turner’s indiscretion, with Ezard able to boot his third goal and all but finish West Coast’s resistance in the match.

The Bombers added a further five goals in the final quarter to run out easy, albeit unconvincing, winners.

Malthouse admitted the heavy travel load had caught up with his side, but had nothing but praise, despite bowing out in penultimate week of the season.

“We looked and acted tired.”

“But I think the spirit was there to generate as much play as possible… it all caught up with them,” Malthouse said.

“The players showed enormous courage and fortitude… at no stage in six weeks of criss-crossing Australia was their a complaint. There was no sign of weakness during a severe test of the team’s character and competitiveness.”

Essendon coach Kevin Sheedy was happy enough with the performance, confident his side would bounce back from the thrashing by Collingwood the week before. “We were switched on early, and the players worked hard to get 18 wins this year and they did not want to let that slip.”

“I feel that will make us 10 percent better next week.”

Greg Anderson and Chris Mainwaring were both their respective sides’ best players, despite being opposed to each other on the wing for much of the afternoon. Anderson finished with 25 touches and booted 1.3, while Mainwaring had 19 disposals and booted a goal.

Terry Daniher and Mark Thompson also finished with 25 touches to lead the way at Essendon, while Tim Watson picked up 22 disposals and booted a goal. Simon Madden was another standout during the game with 21 possessions, 12 marks, 10 hitouts and two goals.

Alan Ezard and Mark Harvey each booted three goals.

At West Coast, Chris Lewis finished as the leading ball winner with 22 in his battle with Mark Thompson. Thompson was influential in the opening term, but Lewis had the better of the match-up over the remainder of the match despite Thompson still finding plenty of the ball. Lewis had been sublime through the second half of the season, with his consistent showing culminating in winning the club best and fairest, as well as being named in the All-Australian side (along with John Worsfold).

Chris Mainwaring was one of the Eagles’ best despite barely being able to see by games end

Dean Kemp picked up 21 touches and Brett Heady 20, as the two finished their impressive debut seasons with strong performances. Stevan Jackson offered plenty in the forward line with three goals from 14 disposals and six marks, while Peter Sumich would rue a wasteful day, finishing with 2.5.

Andrew Lockyer won his battle at centre half back on Paul Van der Haar, keeping the veteran Bomber to just nine disposals and two late goals. Craig Turley (17 disposals) and Guy McKenna (16) toiled hard despite their operating below their capacity.

The Eagles coach was openly proud of his side’s season, but the gains made in season 1990 were best summed up by opposing coach Kevin Sheedy. The Bombers coach – a former teammate of Malthouse’s at Richmond – praised Malthouse, saying he had added professionalism to the four year old club, while also lauding WA’s ‘sensational’ year.

Sheedy said playing four finals in a row was the equivalent of two finals series’ worth of experience, which would be ‘invaluable’.

“After physically and mentally going through it, the standard for West Coast has been set.”

The Eagles for their part had risen from a bit-part team out in the west, to one of premier clubs in the revamped competition in just one season. The addition of Malthouse had been an immediate success – and the board knew as much.

Days before Christmas, the Eagles announced that Malthouse had signed a three year extension to his initial contract, keeping him at the club until the end of 1994.

The ’90s had begun – as had the first Eagles dynasty.  

1990 Rewind: Eagles Exorcise Demons

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Historic First Finals Win For West Coast

West Coast set up a meeting with Essendon in the preliminary final after defeating Melbourne by five goals in the semi final.

Mick Malthouse’s drastic changes at the selection table paid off, as West Coast overcame a poor recent record against Melbourne to produce the clubs first ever win in a final.

One of those selections – Chris Waterman – produced a career best outing booting six goals across half forward.

Waterman was one of six changes for West Coast, with Eagles coach Mick Malthouse ruthlessly axing a quarter of the side that was demolished by Collingwood the week before in the Qualifying Final replay.

The most controversial omission was captain Steve Malaxos, who lost his place after a period of indifferent form. Malaxos had spent much of the previous two games against Collingwood on the bench, with Malthouse later saying the Eagles needed greater leg speed and running power on the wide expanses of Waverley Park.

Joining Malaxos out of the side were ruckman Dean Irving, who had been well beaten in both Collingwood matches, Troy Ugle, Craig McGrath, Murray Rance with a fractured jaw and Peter Wilson who would be a late withdrawal ahead of the game with a hamstring strain.

Phil Scott returned to the Eagles line-up, after being dropped on the eve of the finals, to partner Laurie Keene in the ruck, while Scott Watters returned after missing the replay with a knee injury. Stevan Jackson replaced McGrath up forward after ten goals with South Fremantle in the previous fortnight, while Waterman and Tony Begovich were added for their ability to run and spread.

When Wilson pulled out ahead of the game, Andrew Lockyer was called up, slotting into defence in place of the missing Rance. Guy McKenna had been in doubt after breaking a nose late in the loss to the Magpies, but held his spot, as did Mainwaring whose knee was becoming a week by week proposition.

Stevan Jackson returned to the Eagles side to be one of their best

Melbourne made no change when teams were announced but were soon to have their own late drama. Captain Garry Lyon was pulled from the side on the morning of the game after he suffered a corked thigh colliding with teammate Steven O’Dwyer the day before at training. Todd Viney was called up to the side.

Despite being without Lyon and midfielders Brian Wilson and Alan Johnson, the Demons were still hot favourites to progress to the preliminary final.

It took just 90 seconds for West Coast to show they weren’t going to just whimper away.

Kicking into the wind, the Eagles had two goals on the board – both to Chris Mainwaring – before Melbourne had even worked out their direct match-ups.

As well as bringing in a host of new players, Malthouse also moved his side around as he sought to catch the Demons off guard. Mainwaring started at half forward and his quick brace forced a shuffle of the Melbourne defence with Steven Stretch moved from the wing to replace Matthew Febey.

John Worsfold also started forward, as did Chris Lewis as the Eagles looked to avoid an early tag. Lewis still had Stephen Newport for company, but was influential early as West Coast established an important 13 point lead at quarter time.

Andrew Obst had been instrumental in Melbourne’s win over the Eagles in Perth several weeks earlier and Malthouse wasn’t keen on letting the midfielder run unattended again. Guy McKenna shifted into the midfield in a run-with role, holding Obst to just 12 disposals for the game.

Laurie Keene led the ruck, with Phil Scott taking the resting ruckman in the back pocket, while Andrew Lockyer had first crack at Darren Bennett.

The Demons tried to repeat the physical approach that had seen them defeat West Coast twice during the regular season, but the Eagles kept their focus on the ball.

The 13 point advantage exploded to 45 points by the main break, with the Eagles booting six goals to none with the wind, and the match was as good as done.

Melbourne outscored the Eagles in the second half, but West Coast were never in danger of giving up their spot in the Grand Final playoff.

West Coast would have to get past Essendon if they were to make their first ever Grand Final, after the Bombers were comprehensively beaten by Collingwood in the other semi-final.

Kevin Sheedy denied the Bombers would be affected by the additional layoff because of the drawn Qualifying Final leading into the match, but they appeared sluggish going on to lose by 63 points. The Magpies led by 12 points at half time, but ten goals to two after half time saw Collingwood qualify for their first premiership decider in nine years.

While West Coast could feel satisfied with the history-making first ever finals win in the clubs history, there were concerns to come out of the five goal win.

Scott Watters had arguably been the Eagles’ best player in the first half, but spent the entire second half on the bench with a groin complaint. Guy McKenna suffered a suspected broken arm after clashing with Earl Spalding in the dying minutes of the game and three Eagles wound up on report from separate incidents in the game.

Chris Lewis was placed on report for charging Graeme Yeats and Stevan Jackson was reported for striking Jim Stynes. Both players would get off at the tribunal during the week, but Dwayne Lamb wasn’t so fortunate.

The Eagles tagger was also charged for reporting Stynes, copping a one week ban. Lamb, and many of the other Eagles, were still seeking retribution from the last match between the two sides which saw Stynes break Lamb’s arm with an attempted soccer off the ground.

The Eagles gave it to Stynes, every chance they could, and it appeared to work as Keene controlled the stoppages and provided plenty of attacking run off Stynes around the ground.

The move appeared to work with Melbourne unable to get any direction or structure on the field with their captain missing and their ruckman ineffective.

At the feet of Keene, Craig Turley, Dean Kemp and David Hart had plenty of the ball as they overwhelmed their Demons counterparts. For the second week in a row Turley was one of the best for West Coast, revelling in the centreman role in the absence of Malaxos.

Turley finished with 26 disposals, one behind Mainwaring who had a team high 27 possessions to go with his two goals at the start of the match. Hart, Kemp and Brett Heady all tallied 21 while Keene himself finished with 23 touches, four marks and ten hit-outs.

Scott Watters was one of the best for West Coast but finished on the bench injured

Up forward, the change in dynamic did wonders with West Coast kicking their highest score since round 19. Waterman was the surprise packet with six goals from 17 disposals and nine marks, while Peter Sumich booted four and Stevan Jackson three, the trio combining for 13 of the Eagles’ 19 goals.

Sumich and Jackson also each booted five behinds, with Jackson also gathering 21 disposals and five marks – highlighting the dominance of the Eagles’ tall forwards.

The Demons had few players who shone, with Simon Eishold and Greg Healy the leading ball winners with 20 disposals. Stephen Newport gathered 16 disposals and seven marks after starting in a tagging role on Chris Lewis. Newport was then replaced by Glenn Lovett, but Lewis had the better of both players as his blistering second half of the season continued.

Rod Grinter booted four last quarter goals when he was shifted forward, with Ricky Jackson, Graeme Yeats and Darren Bennett each kicking two.

Demons coach John Northey called his side’s performance ‘pathetic’, with Melbourne unable to live up to their favouritism billing heading into the match. “In finals football, you have to find something extra all the time, and our players weren’t prepared to do it.”

Northey believed that the underdog status had worked in the Eagles’ favour, after two testing weeks against the Magpies.

“When everyone is kicking us in the guts, we have something to prove, but as soon as we become favourites in something, we have always faltered, and not just once, it has happened many, many times,” expressed a frustrated Northey.

 For Mick Malthouse, the performance was justification for their season and followed his earlier comments the week before that West Coast would bounce back. “I think a lot of people underestimated the fighting spirit of this group.”

“We didn’t make the finals series for the sake of making the finals series.”

Malthouse also believed the first ever finals win would be a great fillip for his side as they continued their push for a maiden flag.

“It (a finals win) is fantastic for the players… this year we have won in Sydney for the first time, the MCG for the first time. These are all little hurdles all along that are being looked at by the players.”

The Eagles coach also denied it was a risk making the mass number of changes ahead of the game, with many of the inclusions having a strong say in the final result.

“If it hadn’t come off, I suppose it may have been the biggest gamble of my coaching career,” Malthouse wryly admitted.

1990 Rewind: Not Done Yet

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Malthouse Declares Eagles Will Bounce Back From Replay Thrashing

Eagles coach Mick Malthouse boldly declared his side’s season wouldn’t end in the following weeks semi-final, after succumbing to Collingwood in the qualifying final replay.

West Coast were blown out of the game in the opening term and apart from a ten minute period late in the third quarter, never appeared likely to work their way back into the game.

After the match, Malthouse refused to concede the Eagles would struggle to get past Melbourne in the semi-final, despite needing to return to Waverley Park for a fourth straight week. The Demons had enjoyed the luxury of the week off as West Coast and Collingwood did battle for a second consecutive week.

“The players have a history of character and we have rebounded before. I am confident of beating Melbourne.”

The Eagles though were sluggish as the travel back and forth from Perth appeared to have taken its toll.

West Coast made two changes from the drawn match, with Chris Waterman dropped and Scott Watters unable to take his place after failing a fitness test on the morning of the match. Peter Wilson was recalled from a fractured cheekbone suffered against the Tigers in Round 19, with Troy Ugle the late inclusion for Watters.

Despite concerns over an ongoing knee injury, Chris Mainwaring held his spot on the wing. Steve Malaxos was another who held his spot despite growing speculation over his position in the side.

Collingwood also made two changes with forwards Craig Starcevich and Brian Taylor both dropped. Despite Leigh Matthews’ claims during the week that the Magpies would need a more fleet-footed side, like-for-like players Michael Christian and Denis Banks were the players selected in their place.

Taylor, in particular, could feel aggrieved for his omission after his crucial last quarter involvement saw him kick two goals as the Magpies salvaged a draw. After being left out of the side, the burly full forward announced he would retire at seasons end.

West Coast lined up much like they had the week before, but Leigh Matthews threw his Magpies’ side around to unhinge many of the Eagles’ match ups. James Manson was preferred in the ruck ahead of Damien Monkhorst, regular defender Gavin Crosisca played across half forward and Mick McGuane was recast as a tagger on Chris Lewis.

The Magpies also went small up forward with Gavin Brown and Peter Daicos operating out of the goal square, dragging running defender Guy McKenna to the last line.

Steve Malaxos started in the middle opposed to Collingwood captain Tony Shaw while David Hart also started in the middle with the task of running with Tony Francis.

The match started fiercely when Peter Sumich opened the scoring. Paul Peos’ shot on goal faded towards the goal line with the full forward able to mark over two Collingwood defenders. From the tight angle, Sumich ran around and kicked the Eagles’ first major, but was felled after snapping the goal by Magpie Michael Christian.

Christian was reported for his late hit as a melee involving 20 players broke out in the Eagles forward line. Spotfires continued to erupt around the ground, but it would be Collingwood who would settle into the game better.

The Magpies booted eight of the next nine goals in the quarter, opening up a six goal lead.

And it was the work of Manson in the ruck, who did much of the damage. The lanky ruckman had the better of Dean Irving at the tap, but also exposed the Eagles ruckman around the ground.

With Collingwood benefitting from the breeze in the opening quarter, Irving stationed himself in the Eagles defence. However, Manson enjoyed the freedom through the centre of the ground, running forward to boot two goals in the term, while also having a hand in many of the Magpies other scoring chains.

Gavin Brown and Tony Francis also kicked two majors for the quarter as Collingwood swiftly moved the ball around the ground. Peter Daicos and Darren Millane also hit the scoreboard, with Peter Sumich adding a second goal for West Coast.

The Eagles started strongly in the second term, taking control at the stoppages in the centre square. Laurie Keene took over in the ruck as the Eagles claimed the first four centre clearances. Karl Langdon opened the scoring before Mick McGuane answered after taking a strong mark as he is crunched by John Worsfold and David Hart.

Laurie Keene responded for West Coast, but Collingwood finished the term stronger. Craig Kelly had been shifted forward after starting in defence on Craig McGrath, kicking truly after out-marking Michael Brennan and Brett Heady. Peter Daicos added a second and Gavin Crosisca finished off an impressive first half with a goal that saw Collingwood’s lead reach 49 points at the major break.

Matthews continued to shuffle his players around, preventing West Coast to find a rhythm in the game. Kelly went back to defence in the third term, as did Denis Banks and Shane Morwood, with Matthews dictating the match ups in the battle of the coaches box.

For West Coast, too many players struggled to get into the game. Chris Lewis was blanketed by McGuane, with Malthouse moving the dynamic midfielder into the forward line in a bid to shake the tag. Peter Wilson struggled to handle the pace of the final in his first game in six weeks and the Eagles forward line was virtually non-existent.

Craig Turley was one of the few good players for West Coast

Little much changed to start the third term, with Daicos and Brown each booting their third goals of the match to stretch the Magpies’ lead to a game high 60 points. But with Collingwood coasting to victory, West Coast roared back into the contest.

Ron McKeown, who had had the better of Sumich, limped off with a corked thigh which unsettled the Magpie backline. Michael Christian had been resolute across half back, mainly playing loose in defence, but was forced to mind Sumich.

The Eagles slammed on five goals in eight minutes to put the pro-Collingwood crowd on edge.

Trailing by 30 points with a quarter to play, Peter Sumich had a golden opportunity in the opening seconds of the final term to continue the Eagles momentum.

But as had been the case the week before, Sumich failed to capitalise. Leading new opponent Shane Morwood back to the goal square, Sumich valiantly flailed his left leg at an awkwardly bouncing ball, failing to make even the slightest contact that would have brought West Coast within 24 points.

Instead, Gavin Brown marked a torpedo effort from Peter Daicos at the top of the goal square to steady the Magpies. Collingwood booted the only five goals of the last quarter to run out comfortable 59 point winners – ultimately a fair margin between the two teams on the day.

The result marked the Magpies first finals win since 1984 and the first victory in a final for coach Leigh Matthews. “Most definitely a relief. We’re playing for a Grand Final spot whereas we could have been playing for survival,” a happy Matthews said after the game.

Conversely, a despondent Malthouse reflected on the missed opportunity of the week before.

“Last week was there to be won – I’m a realist.”

“A lot of our players didn’t reach the level they did last week, but it’s been a magnificent experience so far for the players. We always looked second to the ball… and that is a state of mind.”

While acknowledging that his players looked tired, the Eagles coach maintained faith that his side would bounce back against the Demons.

“They (finals) don’t stay the same, they don’t decrease, they always get tougher, week in, week out, and these players have now experienced the intensity of two in a row.”

The difference between the two sides proved to be the spread of contributors as Collingwood had a greater share of the workload. Michael Christian finished as the leading ball winner for the Magpies with 24 disposals and eight marks, while midfielder Scott Russell and wingman Graeme Wright were the next best with 23.

All up, Collingwood had ten players hit the scoreboard with Daicos and Brown the best of those with four each.

Tony Shaw had the better of Steve Malaxos in their individual duel, as did Tony Francis opposed to David Hart. Denis Banks kept Karl Langdon to just ten disposals and a goal and Mick Gayfer provided plenty of run alongside Christian at half back.

For West Coast, only a handful could match the output of the week before. Craig Turley was arguably the Eagles’ best collecting 22 disposals and kicking a goal and winning his contest with Doug Barwick. Laurie Keene was influential when he replaced Dean Irving in the ruck with 21 disposals, 12 hit-outs and two goals. Keene and Sumich (four goals) were the only multiple goal scorers for West Coast.

Dwayne Lamb finished with 26 touches to lead the disposal getters for West Coast, but couldn’t quell the impact of Scott Russell for the Magpies, while Lewis toiled through the game to pick up 20 touches playing between half forward and the midfield.

The double chance had turned into a triple chance, but West Coast now found their season on the line with the Demons waiting.