Tag: blues

2011 Rewind: Eagles Try, Magpies Fly

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Class and Experience Sees Collingwood Home

West Coast gave their all but lacked the extra edge, poise and finish needed to book a preliminary final birth in a 20-point defeat to Collingwood.

The Eagles were never out of the game, but never looked completely in the game in what Eagles coach John Worsfold called a ‘learning experience’.

Ten Eagles were taking part in their first final as opposed to the Magpies who had 18 of their premiership stars from the previous years triumph.

Luke Shuey best exemplified the step up needed in finals when he was caught with the ball three times in the opening half, as the experienced Magpies pressured the young Eagles into numerous skill errors and wasted opportunities.

Shuey had finished runner up in the rising star award to Essendon’s Dyson Heppell in what turned out to be a two-horse race earlier in the week, and for much of the first half seemed overwhelmed by the play around him. However, he improved as the game went on and was one of the Eagles’ best.

But while Shuey led an Eagles midfield that applied themselves to the final siren, they were outshone by Dane Swan and Scott Pendlebury who led a masterclass.

Swan, who was considered one of the favourites for the Brownlow medal, collected 43 disposals, including nine clearances, nine inside-50s and a goal. Pendlebury was the perfect sidekick, with 38 touches, seven inside-50s and five clearances. The duo worked off each other perfectly, with Pendlebury picking up 25 of his 38 possessions in the first half, before Swan carried the side home with 27 disposals after half time.

The two teams named near full-strength sides ahead of the game, with the Eagles selecting Daniel Kerr and Will Schofield to return from injury, while the Magpies welcomed back Nick Maxwell, Leon Davis and Heath Shaw.

The teams may have looked strong on paper, but there was still plenty of doubt for the two sides going into the game. Chris Tarrant, Travis Cloke and Ben Johnson had all finished with issues from the thrashing to Geelong and Daniel Kerr was still under a serious cloud for the Eagles.

The doubts on Kerr would be confirmed when he was a late withdrawal ahead of the opening bounce. Patrick McGinnity, who had lost his place at selection, was reinstated. Collingwood were also forced into a late change when Ben Reid injured a groin at the final training session of the week. With patchy weather expected, the Magpies replaced a tall with a small in rookie forward Alex Fasolo.

The visitors came into the match as major underdogs but they started the better of the two sides with the first four scoring shots of the game. Josh Kennedy and Quinten Lynch both kicked majors as West Coast established an early 2.2 to zero lead.

Nic Naitanui and Dean Cox presented as the biggest challenge for Collingwood and while they claimed an advantage in the ruck knocks, the Magpie midfield soon got the upper hand at the stoppages.

Sharrod Wellingham opened the Magpie account to reduce the Eagles lead to eight points at quarter time, before Collingwood turned the game their way in the second term.

The Magpies booted six goals for the quarter as Pendlebury, Swan, Jarryd Blair, Leon Davis and Ben Johnson kick-started the black-and-whites. Davis and Johnson were particularly damaging out of the back half, along with Heritier Lumumba, as they carved and weaved their way through the Eagles press.

Naitanui was dominant at the ruck knocks for West Coast but the Eagles couldn’t get the upper hand at the stoppages

Leading by 13 points at the main change, the Magpies extended their lead to 26 after goals to Jarryd Blair and Andrew Krakouer. That remained the margin at three-quarter time after Mark LeCras and Travis Cloke traded goals heading into time-on and Collingwood appeared to have done what they needed to, to put the finals upstarts away.

West Coast, though, refused to accept what most others expected.

Even with Cox subbed out during the third term with back spasms, the Eagles found their ascendancy in the middle off the back of Naitanui as the Eagles found consistent forward position for the first time in the match since the opening term.

Quinten Lynch got the Eagles rolling after just 38 seconds when West Coast won the opening centre clearance, before adding a second for the quarter (and third for the match) when he took clean possession from a boundary throw in and snapped truly.

The Eagles continued to push and Jack Darling’s goal at the beginning of time-on had West Coast within seven points and a grandstand finish was on the cards. But Collingwood’s class and experience again came to the fore and they settled in the final minutes to earn the coveted week off.

Worsfold was proud of the commitment of his players but acknowledged the difference between a seasoned opponent and where his young Eagles had come from. Simple misses by Shuey and Scott Selwood as West Coast had all the momentum in the final quarter would prove costly.

“It felt like we were just a little bit short of the class of Collingwood, not the effort but the class. I think we matched them for intensity and effort, but they showed the way with clean ball handling, clean ball use.”

“We just made some errors at times that might have got us more inside 50s, more scoring opportunities and we didn’t quite capitalise”, Worsfold said.

The key to the game lay in the middle of the ground where the Magpies were able to control the stoppages despite Naitanui and Cox’ tap ascendancy. The Eagles eclipsed their opponents 50-29 in the hit-outs, but Collingwood turned the tables at the stoppages, winning the clearances 53-31.

Luke Ball nullified Priddis’ influence at the first possession, limiting Priddis to just four for the match. Nic Naitanui and Luke Shuey combined for 14 clearances – half of the Eagles’ total – but too much was left to too few at the inside-ball contest, where Collingwood had a greater spread of contributors.

Dane Swan was dominant in the Collingwood midfield with 43 disposals

That prevented the Eagles from getting forward and setting up their defensive press, leaving much of their attack to come from the back half of the ground.

Collingwood coach Mick Malthouse lauded his side’s ability to claim a decisive win in the Eagles strongest part of the ground. “They are very, very good at stoppage work and we knew we wouldn’t be in the plus as far as hit-outs go.”

“We needed a contest. We got a contest… we won quite convincingly on these figures… which is a credit to the boys.”

That forced the Eagle tall forwards to work further up the ground, where Kennedy and Darling struggled to have an influence. The pair kicked the Eagles’ first and last goals in the game, but did little for the rest of the game as they were well contained by Chris Tarrant and Alan Toovey.

And where the Eagles were unable to counter from defence, the Magpies were able to bounce from half back, with a number of the Magpie defenders racking up high possession numbers. Leon Davis finished with 33 disposals, Heritier Lumumba and Heath Shaw each had 30 and Ben Johnson collected 26.

Their performances were even more meritorious considering the disrupted preparations for many of them. Davis and Maxwell had missed the defeat to Geelong, Tarrant and Johnson had queries over their fitness and Shaw was playing his first game after serving an eight week ban for betting on AFL matches during the season.

Up forward, it was the smalls who did the damage, with Sharrod Wellingham booting three first half goals and Andrew Krakouer the other multiple goal scorer for the Magpies. Travis Cloke and Chris Dawes were both defeated in their battles against Eric Mackenzie and Darren Glass.

Priddis led the Eagles with 24 disposals, while laying 13 tackles, with Chris Masten (22 disposals, seven tackles) and Scott Selwood (21 disposals, eight tackles) the next best. West Coast laid 100 tackles for the game which both symbolised their ability to meet Collingwood’s attack at the contest, but also that the Magpies players were often a step ahead in the contest.

The two coaches noted the pressure in the game, with Worsfold calling it a ‘pretty intense game’.

“A lot of pressure and we didn’t cope with the pressure as well as we believe that we can. Our players will learn from that.”

Collingwood were joined in the preliminary finals by Geelong, who overcame an early slow start to account for the Hawks. Hawthorn paid for their early inaccuracy when they had the game on their terms, with the Cats systematically working their way towards a 31 point victory in the final three quarters.

Hawthorn were due to meet Sydney in the second week of the finals after they provided the upset of the weekend. The Swans got an early jump on the Saints before St Kilda pegged them back to trail by eight points at the final change. However, four goals to one in the final term saw the grand finalists of the past two seasons out in the first week of finals, following an inconsistent season.

West Coast were due to play Carlton in their knockout semi-final, setting up a mouth-watering clash against their former premiership captain in Chris Judd. In front of over 90,000 fans crammed into the MCG, the Bombers were no match for the Blues who steamrolled their way to a 62 point win.

Eagles Get The Cream

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West Coast Withstand Cats Comeback

Thirty scintillating minutes either side of quarter time and some desperate final quarter defence saw West Coast get home by eight points over ladder-leaders Geelong in one of the games of the 2011 season.

Over 40,000 people packed Subiaco Oval on the Friday night to see the Eagles score their second straight win over a top-four side and continue their push to break into the double chance position.

The Eagles remained fifth following the win, but after serving their second bye the week before, now sat within four points of the Blues and Hawks, with an extra game up their sleeve.

Geelong arrived in Perth as the competition’s benchmark after first-year coach Chris Scott had guided his side to 13 wins from his first 13 games in charge – a VFL/AFL record – but had had their unbeaten streak ended the week before with a surprise four point loss to Essendon.

Scott talked up the Eagles in the lead up, declaring the trip to WA as the biggest challenge in the competition and the Cats could have been accused of having an eye on the Eagles ahead of their match with Essendon.

The Cats made the left-field decision to send several players to WA the week before, with Travis Varcoe and Joel Corey – who were both rested against Essendon – along with suspended midfielder Joel Selwood spending the week training with South Fremantle.

West Coast had their own tribunal issues ahead of the match with Quinten Lynch copping two one week suspensions for separate incidents involving Marc Murphy in the Eagles win over Carlton a fortnight earlier.

While Lynch would plead guilty to a striking charge, confirming his ineligibility for the Geelong match, the Eagles successfully challenged the grading of a rough conduct, reducing the level from high to medium which meant Lynch would serve just the one match suspension.

Lynch was joined by Sam Butler on the sidelines after the defender strained a quad in the final training session of the week. Patrick McGinnity and Koby Stevens were the two inclusions for West Coast, with Stevens making his first appearance of the season.

Geelong made three changes, with Varcoe and Corey returning, along with Taylor Hunt. The Cats were clear in their match selection as they chose a number of mid-sized runners to come into the side in place of tall forwards Mitch Brown and Tom Gillies. Andrew Mackie was the third exclusion for Geelong due to soreness.

Dean Cox started in the ruck for West Coast, but had partner Nic Naitanui beside him at the opening bounce with John Worsfold throwing the Fijian into the centre square alongside Daniel Kerr and Matt Priddis.

The Eagles brought the early intensity with a number of forward entries that had the Geelong defence scrambling. However, for all of the home side’s endeavour, the class of the Cats stood out as they capitalised on the rebound.

Geelong booted four of the first five goals in the game – including their first three from just four forward 50 entries – with James Podsiadly bobbing up for two of them.

West Coast on the other hand were blowing their chances, with Mark Nicoski (twice) and Naitanui both missing simple shots in front of goal.

With five minutes left in the quarter Geelong led 4.1 to 1.3 but West Coast finished the quarter with a flurry of majors to get reward for their dominance. And it was the two players who had been guilty in front of goal earlier in the term who sparked what would be an unanswered nine goal run.

Naitanui would be the fortunate recipient of an overturned free kick in the forward pocket after Jack Darling had sprayed a set shot out on the full. With Geelong set to take possession, Steve Johnson took unkindly to the attention he was receiving from Adam Selwood off the ball, gifting the ball back to the Eagles, where Naitanui snapped truly from the behind post.

Josh Kennedy eked through the Eagles’ third goal after a scramble near the goal square before Mark Nicoski produced a moment of magic.

Collecting the ball on the bounce near the boundary line and cornered by two Geelong defenders, Nicoski fashioned a checkside effort as he was falling backwards that purely defied his two earlier misses from dead in front. That put West Coast in front with Mark LeCras extending the Eagles lead to ten points at the first change in the dying seconds.

The final major told the tale of the first term.

The longer the quarter went, the less sure and composed the Cats defence appeared in the face of the Eagles forward pressure. With the seconds ticking down, Travis Varcoe had possession and looked to exit the ball from the defensive arc. Varcoe overshot his handpass which went directly to Mark LeCras, who then cut a swathe through two defenders and caressed the ball home for the Eagles’ fifth goal from the 50m line.

West Coast had enjoyed 77% of the play in their forward half and led the inside 50 count 18-8 with many of their early matchups were working in their advantage.

Adam Selwood was minding the enigmatic Steve Johnson, brother Scott was doing a similar job on Bartel and Darren Glass had kept the dangerous Daniel Menzel to just two disposals. Brad Ebert had been deployed as a defensive forward on Matthew Scarlett, with the intent of dragging the Cats full back out of the play.

If West Coast had been guilty of not maximising the glut of forward entries in the first quarter, there was no such issue in the second term as the Eagles piled on five goals in 17 minutes to stun the Cats. From sixteen points down entering time-on of the first term, West Coast had advanced to a 40 point lead entering time-on of the second.

Mark Nicoski was dynamic for West Coast up forward with three goals

Bartel eventually ended the Eagles run, but when Brad Ebert rolled home his first major just before half time after another poor turnover in defence by Geelong, this time by Taylor Hunt, West Coast had secured a 35 point lead at the main break.

The Eagles midfield were in complete control from the first half, with Andrew Embley (20 disposals, three clearances), Daniel Kerr (15 disposals, four clearances) and Matt Priddis (14 disposals, four clearances) all prominent.

For Geelong, only Cameron Ling with 18 disposals for the half showed resistance.

The Cats though weren’t the top side in the competition by accident and they proved as such in the early stages of the third quarter when they slammed on four goals in nine minutes to cut the Eagles lead back to 10 points.

Dean Cox provided a steadier but David Wocjinski reduced the margin once again heading into three-quarter time as the match started to take on a different look than earlier in the piece.

Where West Coast had virtually monopolised forward half possession and hunted the Cats when they attempted to control the ball, it was now Geelong that was generating multiple forward 50 entries with the Eagles trying to hold off their momentum.

The first goal of the final term was crucial to both sides, and it would be West Coast who would get the vital strike. With a ball up in their goal square, James Kelly took possession and looked to switch the ball towards the Chris Mainwaring wing. But the ball had barely travelled a metre off his boot before being intercepted by Mark Nicoski, who cleanly took the ball and drilled his third goal of the night.

Geelong continued to press but the first quarter efficiency had all but disappeared as they butchered a spate of chances in front of goal. Paul Chapman, Wocjinski, Steve Johnson and Steven Motlop all missed gettable shots and they were made to pay when Andrew Embley sealed the match on a breakaway move.

Having endured repeat forward entries, Darren Glass was able to mark a Podsiadly entry into the forward line and switch the play as West Coast found a way around the Geelong defence. Josh Kennedy was able to mark at half forward and spotted Embley alone in the forward pocket.

Having taken the mark, Embley inadvertently took a step forward – enough for the umpire to wave play on as Scarlett and Taylor came bearing down on the Eagles wingman. Corralled towards the boundary line and on the wrong side for a right footer, Embley ducked and baulked the pair before swinging home the sealer.

The Cats finished with the final two majors to keep fans on edge, but West Coast had done enough to keep Geelong at bay and record their 10th win of the season.

A pleased John Worsfold commended the maturity of his side as Geelong mounted their comeback. “I think holding on to win with Geelong throwing everything at us in the second half to get back into the game… and the composure the boys showed through the last quarter. I thought that was great…”

“Beating Carlton was fairly important for us because we had some pretty closes losses against some of the other teams that… were going pretty well. It was reward for effort, I think, because we had pushed those teams and lost close games.”

“In the last two weeks we have pushed good teams and won.”

Chris Scott lamented his side’s poor second quarter, which ultimately cost them the game despite the strong second half performance. The Cats recorded 34 inside 50s after half-time, to just 13 for the Eagles and ended up winning the count 52-43 for the match, but had left themselves too much to do.

“Our first half was really bad, theirs was really good. We just didn’t do enough to stop the momentum. They kicked nine straight at one stage.”

“We left ourselves with too much to do, but our gusy are pretty tough and have great character. Even our young players are showing that they play the Geelong way when the chips are down and the disappointing thing is we just didn’t do enough.”

Joel Corey, Corey Enright and Paul Chapman all lifted their rate in the second half with rookie ruckman Nathan Vardy getting a handle of the stoppages. Cameron Ling finished as the leading ball winner with 30 disposals, while Chapman collected 13 touches in the final term to finish the match with 29. Joel Corey tallied 28 possessions and Harry Taylor had 23 disposals and nine marks opposed to Darling in defence.

Andrew Embley was outstanding for West Coast for four quarters, picking up 32 touches on top of kicking the sealing goal. Matt Priddis did much of the grunt work in the middle, while Shannon Hurn and Daniel Kerr each picked up 24 touches. Brad Ebert quelled the influence of Matthew Scarlett and chimed in for 20 disposals and a goal and Matt Rosa was important in the last quarter.

The Cats lost more than the four points on the evening, as they were usurped from top position following a second successive defeat. Collingwood overtook the Cats with a superior percentage after they demolished North Melbourne by 117 points.

Carlton’s surprise 27 point defeat to the Bulldogs, which had the Bulldogs on the edge of the top eight, now had the Blues prime for the picking in fourth spot. West Coast had the prize of the double chance firmly in their grasp but the ever-straight Worsfold continued to preach the evolution of his squad.

“Our goals have always been about continual improvement.”

“It has come pretty quickly in terms of this year, but we are still a long way short of where we want to be”, Worsfold said.

“But we are prepared to do the hard work it is going to take.”

West Coast Claim The 8-Pointer

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Eagles Firm For Top Four With Blue Win

For every team, there is a defining match of their season. Whether they are on the slide or on the rise, retrospect allows all to realise that that game was it.

In Round 14 of the 2011 season, the Eagles’ finals and premiership aspirations claimed legitimacy across the competition and with many pundits and scribes when they travelled to Victoria and toppled Carlton by 36 points.

West Coast had delighted their fans with strong showings in the first half of the season with the mix of blossoming youngsters and the returning form of some old hands suggesting the Eagles’ stay down the bottom of the ladder might finally be coming to an end.

But heading into the round 14 clash with the third-placed Blues, Carlton were warm favourites for most with the expectation the Eagles would receive a reality check. Both sides were in strong form with the Eagles winning five of their last six games, and the Blues having won seven of their past eight matches.

But the Blues were seen as the genuine challenger to Geelong and Collingwood for the flag were clear $1.15 favourites heading into the match.

Carlton coach Brett Ratten didn’t shy away from his sides favouritism heading into the game, adamant that the Blues would be able to handle the Eagles forward press that had confounded much of their opposition so far this season.

The Blues were dealt some blows leading into the game with ruckman Shaun Hampson, midfielder Ed Curnow and defender Nick Duigan unable to recover from injuries picked up in the win over Sydney the week before. Jarrod Waite also failed to gain selection with Carlton opting to give the key forward an extra week to recover from a hamstring injury.

Rhys O’Keefe was selected for his debut, with David Armfield and Robbie Warnock the other inclusions. Warnock was set to partner Matthew Kruezer in the vital ruck battle against Eagles pair Dean Cox and Nic Naitanui.

West Coast took a far greater settled side into the match with Eric Mackenzie the one change. Patrick McGinnity made way with Mark Nicoski reaching 100 games in his eighth season in the AFL. McGinnity’s exclusion was somewhat of a surprise with the expectation that the tagger would go to one of the strong Carlton midfield, or even play a role down back against the mosquito fleet in the Blues forward line.

Mitch Robinson became the fourth out for the Blues ahead of the opening bounce, replaced by Mark Austin, but Carlton started strongly as they followed through with Ratten’s promise from during the week in the opening minutes.

The Blues had most of the forward play and laid seven tackles inside their front 50 as West Coast were served a taste of their own medicine. The Eagles valiantly held their own, conceding just the one goal, to Jeff Garlett.

While Carlton were looking to get the game on the ground, the Eagles had the upper hand in the aerial battle and midway through the first quarter, they got the game on their terms.

That advantage only increased when Carlton full back Michael Jamieson wrenched his knee on the wing, rendering him virtually useless. Jamieson attempted to play on, but his incapacitation resulted in a reshuffle in defence that aided the Eagle talls.

Bret Thornton was moved onto Kennedy, Jordan Russell was left to deal with the much taller Jack Darling and Lachie Henderson was switched from forward to defence. Nicoski and Kennedy goaled to put West Coast in front and while former Eagles captain Chris Judd drew the Blues back to level terms on the scoreboard, the match was clearly going in one direction.

Naitanui, LeCras, Rosa and Shuey all missed chances they should have kicked to see the Eagles to a narrow quarter time lead, but West Coast got the separation they warranted in the second term.

Dean Cox was controlling the tap as the Eagles slammed on six goals for the term. Matt Priddis and Daniel Kerr turned Cox’ ruckwork into clearances and the trio of talls in Kennedy, Darling and Lynch were proving too much for their opponents.

Lynch in particular was giving Carlton the blues all over the ground as he worked up and down the wings to drive the ball into the Eagles forward 50 and provide additional support to prevent it coming back out.

The tale of the two sides in the second quarter could be best described in a respective player from each side. While Michael Jamieson, like his Blues, spent much of the term hobbled around the forward line, Eagles ruckman Nic Naitanui soared to sit on the shoulders of teammate Darling and Carlton’s Zach Touhy and provide a mark of the year contender.

Naitanui subsequently slotted the goal and when LeCras added his second for the term moments later, the Eagles had skipped to a five goal lead.

Lynch was the leading ball winner for the half for West Coast, with 11, while Daniel Kerr, Matt Priddis, Dean Cox and Ashley Smith each had 10 disposals. Carlton’s best performers were defenders Bret Thornton and Kade Simpson who had been exposed to a glut of ball in the Eagles forward half, while Heath Scotland was the lone performer in the Blues midfield.

For all of their efforts, thought, Carlton weren’t occupying a top four spot for no reason and in a flash after half-time, the match was again up for grabs. The Blues opened the second half with four goals in the first twelve minutes to claw back to within four points of the Eagles.

Carlton had earned the upper hand through the midfield, when Brett Ratten went the unorthodox route of sending Judd to tag Kerr. Scott Selwood had restricted Judd to just six disposals in the first half and with his prime mover having no impact, Ratten used his captain to nullify former teammate and still current friend Kerr.

The sight of the reigning brownlow medallist thrown into a tagging role remarkably wasn’t the strangest sight of the third term; rain began to fall, which wouldn’t normally be an issue at Docklands, except that whoever controlled the roof hadn’t run their eye over the weather forecast for the day and left it open.

Nonetheless, the move of Judd freed up Marc Murphy who got Carlton ticking, while Ryan Houlihan and Scotland provided the drive from the wings.

However, West Coast then showed they had the mettle to match the top sides.

The Eagles finished with four of the last five goals in the term to work their way to a 22 point lead. Ashley Smith and Will Schofield kicked two of those four, as West Coast pressed forward en masse.

Nic Naitanui soars in the second term for one of the marks of 2011

The final term was a battle with neither team gaining or giving ground, until late in time on when Jack Darling and Ashley Smith put the icing on a vital result.

The 36 point win may have only added four points to the Eagles tally on the ladder, but the result had far greater ramifications.

Heading into the match, the Blues had a one and a half game break on West Coast and a Carlton win would have almost knocked West Coast out of top four contention. Instead, the Eagles claimed the atypical eight-point match to heap the pressure back on the Blues and Hawks.

Matt Priddis as the best afield for West Coast, despite close attention from David Ellard, to collect 30 disposals, 10 clearances and six tackles. Sam Butler was a strong four quarter contributor to finish with 22 touches, as did Quinten Lynch who added 12 marks, eight inside-50s and two goals to his 22 possessions.

Dean Cox picked up 21 touches to go with 22 hit-outs and Ashley Smith kicked multiple goals with 21 disposals and nine marks from defence. Mark LeCras finished with three majors, while Smith, Lynch, Josh Kennedy and Mark Nicoski were the other multiple goal scorers.

Heath Scotland tallied 32 disposals and Marc Murphy 28 as many of Carlton’s important players were well held. Judd managed just four kicks and 13 handballs as Scott Selwood managed to apply the clamp. Bret Thornton had 26 disposals and 11 marks in defence, while Garlett and Betts booted half of the Blues’ goals, as Kreuzer, Walker and Henderson failed to trouble the scoreboard.

The Eagles performance left rival coach Brett Ratten in no doubt as to the potential of this season’s rapid risers.

“They outplayed us today. I thought they outworked us today all over the ground and it’s a credit to them.”

“I’ve seen them a fair bit and I think their work rate and what they’ve done as a team… they’ve backed it up week-in, week-out. And it’s a credit to Woosha and his group changing the game plan and getting the success he has so far.”

As well as moving to within two points of the top four, the Eagles also gained separation on the lower section of the top eight. West Coast pushed six points clear of the sixth-placed Swans after they fell to Collingwood by six points.

The Magpies held their spot in the top two ahead of Hawthorn who replaced the Blues in third spot with a thumping 65 point win over the Bombers, despite being without usual Essendon tormentor Lance Franklin. Geelong held sway at the top of the ladder when they extended their unbeaten start to the year to 13 games after defeating Adelaide by 52 points.

Fremantle overcame a half-time deficit to defeat the Lions, while Melbourne rounded out the top eight after they replaced Essendon following a 27 point win over Richmond.

Ahead of their second bye of the season, Worsfold played down comments he had made the year before when he declared the Eagles would be challengers for the 2012 premiership despite being on the cusp of the top four.

But the Eagles coach did admit that it was the most significant win for West Coast this season.

“Every win for us for where we’re building to as a young team is really important. We’re just looking to win our next game now as quickly as we can.”

“Our aim is to build a team that can challenge for a premiership… I think what people have seen so far is that there is a pathway that we believe in and we’re heading down.”

1990 Rewind: No Scoring Blues For Eagles

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Second Quarter Burst Proves The Difference

The Eagles may have wondered where their goals were going to come from in their clash with Carlton at Princes Park, but they need not have worried as they tallied their highest score of the season so far in a 31 point win over the Blues.

The Eagles started the game without their three leading goalscorers from the season – Peter Sumich, Brett Heady and Karl Langdon – but found the spread of contributors they required to post a winning score.

Eleven Eagles kicked majors, with Craig McGrath and Peter Wilson leading the way with three apiece.

In a high scoring encounter, both sides opened with five goals, and each side managed eight goals after half time, but it was a seven goal burst to the Eagles in the second quarter that steered them to their 12th win of the season.

The victory also marked the Eagles’ first win over Carlton at their home ground in the third clash between the two teams at the Blues’ home ground.

West Coast coach Mick Malthouse believed the win would do wonders for the confidence of his side. “There was just that lingering doubt in the back of their minds about whether we could win here. I would hope that we have turned that corner.”

The Eagles made two changes with full-forward Peter Sumich ruled out with a hamstring injury and Brad Gwilliam dropped after just one game back with the senior team. Despite the absence of Sumich, Stevan Jackson was surprisingly overlooked as his replacement, having served his one match ban.

Instead Peter Melesso was picked for his first senior game in 1990 after a consistent season with East Perth. Dean Kemp also returned after a fortnight sidelined with a hamstring strain.

The Blues also made two changes with important players Fraser Brown and Peter Dean included for dropped pair Simon Verbeek and Tim Rieniets.

Carlton had won four of their past five games to have them outside the top five on percentage, with the only blemish a nine-goal defeat to league leaders Collingwood. With Hawthorn and Melbourne expected to account for their opponents in Brisbane and Fitzroy, a win at home against West Coast was imperative to stay in touch.

Jackson would find his way into the Eagles side ahead of the opening bounce, when Karl Langdon was a late withdrawal due to illness.

With losses in their last four visits to Melbourne, a strong start from West Coast was required, and the two teams traded blows in the first quarter, booting five goals apiece. The Eagles controlled much of the early play, but Carlton were able to maximise their opportunities up forward.

But in the second quarter, it all turned the way of the visitors.

Stephen Malaxos was once again the catalyst, as West Coast got the upper hand in the stoppages. The Eagles captain teamed up with Craig Turley, in the centre as the Eagles continually surged the ball forward to hit the scoreboard.

Conversely, the Blues started to struggle under the Eagles man-on approach and were made to pay for costly mistakes down back.

The Eagles had customarily built their season on their rebound from defence and their ability to outgun the opposition, but West Coast employed a far tighter approach on their opponents, and the Blues cracked.

Malaxos put the Eagles two goals clear early in the term when he marked an errant kick out of the back pocket from Tom Alvin, before Melesso marked his return to senior football with a goal after Jon Dorotich dropped a defensive mark in the goal square.

Fraser Murphy twice responded with goals in the quarter, first after Melesso’s major, and then again after Dwayne Lamb goaled, but the Eagles finished with the final three goals in the term in what would be a match-winning break.

Craig McGrath ran onto a clever handball from Troy Ugle to boot the first, before Craig Turley goaled from a long range effort after some quick transition play by Chris Mainwaring and John Worsfold through the middle of the ground. Dwayne Lamb then added a second goal for the term after being found in space by Dean Kemp to put West Coast 33 points clear at the main break.

The Eagles applied the clamps through the second half as the margin hovered around the five goal mark for the rest of the game.

Dwayne Lamb claimed another victim for the year in his tagging role on Craig Bradley, restricting the Blues prime runner to 19 disposals. Lamb himself finished with 22 touches and two goal to be one of the Eagles’ best, with the centreline of West Coast getting the better of their counterparts.

David Hart ran with Andrew Phillips, Malaxos had the better of Adrian Gleeson and Craig Turley and Chris Mainwaring were too strong on the wings for Mil Hanna and David Glascott.

Guy McKenna led the Eagles possession winners with 28 from half back, with Turley the next best with 25 and two goals. Chris Lewis had 23 disposals through the centre, while Peter Wilson was ever-present with 20 possessions at half forward.

Craig McGrath appeared to relish being the focal point, producing the finest game of his short career with 22 touches and three goals.

In defence, Michael Brennan had the better of Simon Minton-Connell, although the Blues forward managed to boot three goals late.

Peter Wilson gets a handpass away despite the attention of Stephen Silvagni

Wayne Johnston was the clear best for Carlton with 32 touches in the middle of the ground, while Stephen Silvagni stood tough in defence in the first half before switching forward after half time. Stephen Kernahan booted four goals from 15 disposals and ten marks, in an intriguing battle with Phil Scott.

After the game, Alex Jesaulenko was upbeat about his sides’ hopes of still making finals, but the defeat to West Coast saw them complete the round in eighth spot, a game and percentage behind the Hawks.

Hawthorn held onto fifth spot after fighting their way past a tough Brisbane outfit. The Hawks early inaccuracy almost proved costly as the Bears raced to a 25 point lead at quarter time. Hawthorn booted 1.7 in the first term, before closing within 11 points at the main break as their kicking on goal improved slightly.

Nine goals to four after half time saw the Hawks home, with Footscray taking the Blues spot in sixth position when they held onto a valiant three point win over the top-of-the-table Magpies in one of the games of the season. Like the Hawks, Collingwood fell to an early deficit due to poor conversion, before just failing in their bid to steal the win.

At three quarter time, the Magpies still trailed by 26 points – despite having two more scoring shots – but they grabbed the lead late in the final quarter after rattling on five goals. However, Stephen Kolyniuk bobbed up for the match-winner for Footscray when he marked 45 metres out and audaciously ran around Graeme Wright on the mark to kick the decisive goal.

The result saw Collingwood lose top spot on the ladder, with Essendon moving back to the top following a thumping 79 point win over a dismal Richmond. Melbourne made it consecutive wins when they held off Fitzroy by 19 points to stay a game ahead of the Hawks and Bulldogs in fourth.

North Melbourne and St Kilda remained in the logjam for fifth spot with wins over Geelong and Sydney. John Longmire booted seven goals as North Melbourne held off the Cats in a high-scoring encounter, while the Saints were just glad to have their full forward playing again in a comfortable win over Sydney.

Tony Lockett returned for his first game in over two months, booting three goals. Stewart Loewe (five goals) and Nicky Winmar (four) were the major contributors for the Saints as they put the disappointment of consecutive narrow losses to West Coast and Carlton behind them in a 75 point thrashing of the Swans.

The Saints were two games behind the Hawks, but their superior percentage meant they were still a sneaky chance for finals with five rounds remaining in the season.

For West Coast, losses to Essendon and Collingwood in the previous two weeks had seen the Eagle close within a game of the pair, opening the chance they could still finish in the top two.

Eagles Continue Blues Misery

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Eagles Coast To Thumping Win

West Coast made it three wins from four games when they easily defeated the Blues in their round four clash, in front of a record attendance at the WACA.

A crowd of 28,568 were on hand to witness the Eagles 50 point win, bettering the ground’s previous highest attendance at the Australia v Pakistan one-day international the previous summer.

The Eagles extended their lead at every change in the routine win, which was highlighted by the impressive debut of midfielder Brett Heady.

Heady had starred for Subiaco four days earlier in the Lions’ 50 point win over Perth, and despite the short turnaround, gathered 18 disposals and booted two goals in a notable performance first-up effort with West Coast.

The inclusion of Heady was one of three for the Eagles after their thumping win over Footscray. David O’Connell was selected for his first match of the season and Michael Brennan returned from a groin injury picked up in the round two defeat to St Kilda. Paul Peos was ruled out with a knee injury, while Brad Gwilliam and Dean Irving were both dropped.

After losing their first two games, the Blues arrived in Perth off the back of a 14 point win over the Saints. However the win came at a cost with both Mark Naley and Simon Minton-Connell injured and subsequently ruled out against the Eagles. Chris Bond was also dropped, with David Glascott, Ian Herman and Andrew Phillips all included.

With Minton-Connell sidelined and Stephen Kernahan used through the ruck with Justin Madden unavailable for selection, the Blues lacked any forward presence.

Richard Dennis kicked the opening goal after receiving a 50m penalty, but the Eagles had control of the play from early in the game. Only the strong defensive efforts of Stephen Silvagni and David Rhys-Jones prevented West Coast from hitting the front, but when Peter Sumich and Karl Langdon goaled right before quarter time, the Eagles had taken a lead they would not relinquish.

Three goals to one in the second term extended the Eagles’ lead to 20 points at the main break, but the lead could have been so much more if not for inaccurate kicking. Dean Laidley and Guy McKenna created plenty of drive off half back, the pair combining for 20 disposals in the second quarter alone.

Laidley had picked up 19 disposals by half time, while debutant Heady tallied eight touches in the second quarter, as did Stephen Malaxos and Dwayne Lamb. As West Coast flexed their superiority in the game, things got worse for the Blues when they lost Silvagni to injured ribs after a heavy collision, denying the Blues another of their key talls.

With his side needing a spark, Alex Jesaulenko swung Rhys-Jones to full forward and got an immediate response as Rhys-Jones booted three goals in six minutes to bring the Blues back within touching distance.

However, West Coast settled with the final five goals of the quarter to take their lead out to 38 points, before a six-goal final term ensured a comfortable win.

Sumich led the Eagles goal kicking with four majors, while Peter Wilson and Craig Turley each booted three.

Laidley finished with 30 disposals after his barnstorming first half and Stephen Malaxos was industrious through the middle with 29 touches. As well as hitting the scoreboard, Wilson and Turley were both productive with the ball, collecting 25 and 22 dipsosals respectively.

Dwayne Lamb shut down Craig Bradley on the wing, while the Eagles defence, led by Laidley, Guy McKenna and Murray Rance were again steadfast. After four rounds, the Eagles had conceded the least amount of points – 310 – in the league; 118 of which came in the loss to St Kilda.

“Our backline is functioning very well”, a delighted Malthouse declared after the game. “It’s early days, but its slowly and surely coming about.”

The win lifted the Eagles back into the top five at the expense of North Melbourne, who dropped out after a five goal defeat to Geelong. West Coast sat in fifth, percentage behind the Saints, Hawks and Bombers, with Melbourne still undefeated when they overturned a half time deficit to defeat Fitzroy.

With winnable games to come against lowly Sydney and Richmond, the Eagles were primed to consolidate their position in the finals placings, despite starting to build a concerning injury list.

Chris Mainwaring had missed a fortnight with a back fracture, while Chris Lewis and Chris Waterman both remained sidelined from injuries picked up in the pre-season. John Annear and Don Pyke were both injured the previous week playing for their respective WAFL sides after falling out of the Eagles line-up following the Saints defeat, while Tony Begovich and Andrew MacNish were also injured the previous week in the WAFL.

Geoff Miles hadn’t made an appearance at any level as he battled a hamstring injury and Paul Peos was expected to miss the majority of the season with a knee complaint.

1994 Rewind: Eagles Crash To Blues

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Mick Malthouse had just one thought following the Eagles 64 point drubbing to Carlton.

“The bye has come as a blessing in many respects.”

That a week off was the one positive from the top-of-the-table clash against Carlton said plenty about the performance. Jason Ball kicked the opening goal of the game, but it was all the home side from that point on, as Carlton booted 10 of the next 12 goals to storm to a 42 point half-time lead.

It fared little better through the second half as Carlton did as they pleased to move back within a game of West Coast at the top of the ladder and with a game in hand.

The result also produced a crucial 10 percent swing the between the two sides in the tight race for the minor premiership. The Eagles lost seven percent from the heavy defeat, dropping from 135.6 to 128.1, while the Blues improved from 126.4 to 129.3.

Following the defeat, Malthouse implored his players to regroup from the result ahead of their final home and away game of the season in a fortnights time, after their round 23 bye.

“No one likes to lose by 10 or 11 goals. Your confidence goes out the door.”

To compound matters, West Coast lost several key players with injury and had Craig Turley placed on report. Turley would later receive a two week ban for striking Greg Williams.

West Coast could have wrapped up top spot with a win over the Blues, but Carlton – who were desperate to atone for a shock eight point loss to Sydney the week before – were desperate to keep their shot at the minor premiership alive.

The Blues made four changes for the clash with Mil Hanna, Adrian Whitehead, Brett Ratten and young ruckman Matthew Allan all coming into the side. Forward James Cook was forced out with a heel injury, while Troy Bond, Brett Sholl and Stephen Oliver were all omitted.

The Eagles made no changes to the team that defeated North Melbourne the previous Friday night, despite injury concerns during the week over Chris Lewis and Ashley McIntosh.

West Coast lined up as expected, but David Parkin threw his side around in a bid to quell many of the Eagles playmakers. Andrew McKay was moved to half-forward in a tagging role on Guy McKenna, while the Blues also considered their match-ups for the Eagles midfield trio of Peter Matera, Dean Kemp and Chris Mainwaring.

Matthew Hogg was given the run-with role on Kemp, while offensive runners Craig Bradley and Anthony Koutofides lined up on the wing to go head-to-head with Matera and Mainwaring. Carlton coach David Parkin said the Blues had placed a focus on limiting the Eagles midfield drive.

“With both sides having such strong backlines we knew the game would be won in the midfield. We knew we had to harass players like Kemp, Matera and Mainwaring and not let them break away.”

Hogg kept Kemp to just four possessions to three quarter time, with the Eagle midfielder then moved into the forward line when he became hampered with an achilles injury. Koutofides had the better of Mainwaring, while Bradley’s run forced Matera to play defensively, depriving West Coast of attacking flair.

Bradley had 10 first-quarter possessions, and finished the term with one of the goals of the year. Taking possession on the wing, Bradley had several bounces running the outer wing, partaking in a one-two with Andrew McKay, and then curling the ball from 40m with a checkside from the boundary, just out of reach of a sprawling Jakovich on the goal line.

While the Blues perfected their plans for the Eagles midfielders, there was nothing West Coast could do to stop Greg Williams. The Carlton centreman was central to everything early and by quarter time he had made his mark on the game.

Williams had 13 possessions by quarter time and had directly created three of the Blues six first quarter goals. Craig Turley was given the initial assignment on Williams, but was on the bench midway through the term after going into the umpire’s book for striking. Don Pyke and Drew Banfield both spent time during the day on Williams but he proved unstoppable.

Craig Turley copped a two week suspension for striking Greg Williams.

Four goals down at the first break, Malthouse swung the changes in an attempt to get his side back into the game. Jason Ball was sent to full back to mind Stephen Kernahan, who had booted two goals in the first term on Glen Jakovich.

Jakovich was moved to his customary position at centre half back on Earl Spalding, with Michael Brennan coming off the bench in place of Mitchell White. Brett Heady – a surprise starter on the interchange – was also introduced into the game, but the moves did little to stop the Blues as Carlton’s midfield continued to control proceedings.

The Blues booted the first four goals of the quarter to race to a 49 point lead and all but end the contest, with a late Ryan Turnbull long bomb just before half-time breaking the drought for West Coast.

In the second half, West Coast were forced into preservation mode as they regularly lost players to injury. John Worsfold had a recurrence of a groin problem and was joined on the bench soon after by Jakovich who suffered a knee injury from landing awkwardly in a marking contest.

Ryan Turnbull then became the third player consigned to the bench with his own knee concerns, with Pyke (wrist) and Kemp (achilles) stuck on the ground to battle through their ailments. For Malthouse, the game had left plenty to ponder.

Instead of going into the bye in a position of strength, the Eagles now had a fortnight to patch players up before their final game against Footscray and then a finals campaign.

“We are under a lot of pressure because we have a lot of players who have received injuries. [The bye] gives us the chance to get a couple of blokes up. But I don’t know whether we are going to get them all up. That’s the trouble.”

Carlton’s win saw them move up to equal flag favouritism, along with West Coast, as doubts grew over the Eagles late-season form. The defeat was their third in six games and with fresh injury concerns, questions started to grow over the Eagles premiership contention. The shift in percentage meant that the Blues could now take top spot with a win over Richmond the following week, while West Coast had the week off.

David Parkin praised the response of his players, describing the win as one of the best of his career, while also acknowledging the unpredictability of the season.

“I guess to be beaten by the bottom side at its lowest ebb and then to come out and beat the top side, which is in pretty good form, is one of the things that makes Australian football so exciting.”

Greg Williams continued on from his blistering start, doubling his opening quarter tally by half-time and eventually finishing with 45 touches. The Carlton centreman tallied 17 kicks and 28 handballs and was central in many of Carlton’s forward entries.

Williams was the clear best on ground, but there were no shortage of best players amongst his teammates. Craig Bradley finished with 29 touches and two goals and was far too good for Matera, Barry Mitchell had 27 possessions and also booted two goals in his 200th game, while Brett Ratten finished with 26 touches. Up forward, Stephen Kernahan completed the work of the midfielders with six goals and half-forward Tom Alvin chipped in with three.

For West Coast, it was hard to find a winner on the ground. Jason Ball toiled hard in defence against Kernahan and Tony Evans and Don Pyke each finished with 20 disposals, but too many Eagles had no impact on the game.

While West Coast and Carlton’s battle for top spot was set to go the whole way, the rest of the top eight was also still up for grabs with just one win separating third from ninth.

North Melbourne’s third straight loss – a 20 point defeat to Melbourne – saw them drop from third to sixth as Footscray, Collingwood and Richmond moved past them. The Bulldogs climbed to third when they saw off a late Brisbane challenge to beat the Bears by 10 points, the Magpies squeaked past Geelong by three points courtesy of a late Nathan Buckley winner and Richmond easily accounted for Fitzroy by ten goals.

Melbourne’s win over the Kangaroos saw them jump back into the top eight ahead of Geelong who fell from fifth to eighth, and Hawthorn who tumbled out of the top eight after they lost to Essendon by 52 points in a disappointing display.

1994 Rewind: Eagles Blast Blues

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The Eagles confirmed themselves as premiership favourites when they thrashed a sluggish Carlton at Subiaco. West Coast were in control from start to finish, romping to a 66 point win against the 1993 Grand Finalists.

David Hynes, Brett Heady and Chris Lewis each kicked three goals in a multi-faceted forward line that was without the injured Peter Sumich, while the defence was as steady as ever, holding the visitors to just six goals.

The writing was on the wall early as West Coast registered 14 scoring shots in the opening quarter – to just three to the Blues – and only inaccuracy prevented their lead from being greater than 31 points at the first change. The Eagles steadily extended their advantage at each of the breaks through the afternoon, leading by 44 at half time, 56 at three-quarter time and 66 by the final siren.

For the second week in a row, Chris Mainwaring had the better of several opponents as he provided plenty of run for West Coast on the wing. Mainwaring had been in doubt after leaving the training track early during the week but he was a driving force in a dominant midfield display. Wing partner Peter Matera resumed after a week out sidelined with concussion, although he was slightly shadowed by Matthew Hogg.

Matera was one of two inclusions for the Eagles, with Jason Ball recalled for his first senior game in over 12 months. Ball was one of a number of players who rotated through full-forward in the absence of Sumich with Ashley McIntosh, David Hynes and Ryan Turnbull also spending time in the Eagles goal square.

The Blues made just one change coming into the game, despite a handful of players potentially four games in 14 days. Carlton had played Sydney the previous Sunday before six players – Stephen Silvagni, Stephen Kernahan, Mil Hanna, Matthew Hogg, Troy Bond and Andrew McKay – took part in the mid-week state-of-origin clash between Victoria and South Australia. The Blues were then scheduled to take on Richmond five days after the Eagles clash in Perth, drawing criticism from coach David Parkin.

Brett Oliver was brought in after booting eight goals for Carlton’s VSFL side the week before in his return from injury. Oliver joined Stephen Kernahan and James Cook up forward, with the Blues looking to stretch the West Coast defence.

However, it mattered little in the first quarter as the ball was camped in the Eagles forward half. The West Coast midfield exposed the Blues’ lack of pace and the visitors cause wasn’t helped when they lost Brett Ratten inside the opening ten minutes to a knee injury.

Chris Mainwaring had seven kicks and a handpass for the opening term, eclipsing Fraser Brown, and had good support from Peter Wilson (seven kicks, three handpasses) and Don Pyke (five kicks, three handpasses) who was working offensively off Greg Williams at every opportunity.

The Blues had a brief foothold in the game to start the second term, but a flurry of goals late in the quarter effectively ended the contest. David Hynes – who had been the Eagles sole representative in the state-of-origin during the week – kicked three goals in a purple patch opposed to Carlton full back Stephen Silvagni. Chris Lewis contributed two of his own and the Eagles held a commanding 44 point lead at the main break.

The Eagles booted six goals to two in the second half to make it five wins from the opening seven rounds, lifting them to 2nd on the ladder behind only Melbourne.

After seeing off Brown, Mainwaring then had the better of Tommy Alvin and Mil Hanna, finishing with 26 disposals and a goal in a performance worthy of three Brownlow votes. Peter Wilson played his best game of 1994 to gather 25 disposals, while Don Pyke finished with 23 in his battle with Greg Williams.

Williams was arguably the Blues best player, collecting 28 possessions and kicking 2.3 to edge Pyke in their individual battle, while Barry Mitchell also had 28 possessions. The Blues though had few winners on the ground, with their key forwards well beaten.

Glen Jakovich and Guy McKenna were dominant at half-back, with Jakovich shutting Carlton captain Stephen Kernahan completely out of the game. Guy McKenna provided plenty of run off the back flank, as did Chris Waterman who lined up on the opposite half back flank. James Cook failed to get a touch in the first half against Michael Brennan, with Oliver not doing much better when he came on after half-time.

Brett Heady and Chris Lewis were constant threats up forward, while Ashley McIntosh had the better of Ang Christou forcing Parkin to move Anthony Koutofides into the Carlton defence.

Eagles coach Mick Malthouse was satisfied with the ‘good win’ but was clearly agitated both at three quarter time and after the game. Malthouse was unimpressed with the umpiring performance, directing captain John Worsfold to question a number of calls at three-quarter time. The Blues won the free kick count 24-14.

“The boys played pretty well. We became a bit wasteful at times but given the fact we played here two weeks ago and were very poor, with only a couple of winners, I guess we had a lot of contributors today.”

Malthouse also rejected suggestions post-match that the Eagles forward line – who had booted 16 goals from 35 scoring shots – functioned better without spearhead Peter Sumich.

“A lot of people would like to think we are better off. He (Sumich) has his critics. But I’ll say right now he is our best full forward… and he will play there as soon as he is right.”

After impressive wins against North Melbourne and Carlton, the bye had threatened to come at the wrong time for West Coast with Malthouse admitting that it wasn’t ideal. However, he remained positive it wouldn’t affect his side.

“We rarely have a bad result after the bye, although I can’t remember last year. Certainly the two years before that we did well after the bye.”