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1990 Rewind: 2nd Spot Opens Up For West Coast

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Eagles Survive Tiger Scare

Richmond got the early jump, but it still wasn’t enough to prevent West Coast from romping to a 45 point win at Subiaco.

The Tigers booted seven goals in the opening quarter to open up a four goal lead at quarter time, but the Eagles took control in the final three terms to close in on second spot.

The lowly Tigers weren’t expected to present much of a challenge to the finals-bound Eagles, who were priced as short as $1.06 during the week, but they got the better of the early match-ups to stun the home team and fans to get an early break.

Michael Mitchell was electric in the first quarter, while Stuart Maxfield had the better of Chris Mainwaring on the wing and Matthew Knights provided the drive out of the centre.

The Eagles were also uncharacteristically clumsy in defence as Richmond pounced on a number of errors from the West Coast backmen.

At quarter time, Eagles coach Mick Malthouse moved the magnets and found the right balance, with West Coast booting 7.6 for the quarter and orchestrating a 38 point turnaround.

David Hart moved from Trent Nichols to Mitchell, Brett Heady went to half-forward and Dean Kemp shifted into the middle.

Heady was one of two inclusions for West Coast, who lost vice-captain John Worsfold during the week to suspension. Worsfold was slapped with a two week ban for striking Sydney midfielder Greg Williams. Dean Turner was the other change, omitted in favour of Don Pyke, who was recalled for just his fourth game of the season.

Leading by 14 points at the break, Richmond closed the margin to just six with the first two goals of the term but the Eagles booted five of the next eight goals into the breeze to hold the lead going into the last quarter.

Troy Ugle came off the bench after half-time, to boot three of the Eagles’ five for the third term. The Eagles then ran away with the game in the last term, with their second use of the breeze.

West Coast registered 16 scoring shots for the term and their inaccurate effort of 7.9 prevented the margin from being higher. The Tigers, for all their effort at the start of the game, fell off the pace as Eagle players did as they pleased in the final quarter.

Twice Guy McKenna drifted forward to boot goals, finishing as one of the best players for West Coast after a jittery opening quarter. Defenders Geoff Miles and Phil Scott also drifted forward to hit the scoreboard as the last quarter descended into one-way traffic.

Chris Mainwaring was another to finish as one of the Eagles’ best after lowering his colours early in the game to Maxfield. Malthouse persisted with Mainwaring on the wing, and the Eagle had a hand in many of the Eagles’ scoring opportunities.

Stephen Malaxos again finished as the Eagles’ prime possession winner, tallying 27 through the middle, as did Kemp. Craig Turley picked up 24 disposals, while David Hart was able to gather 22 and kick three goals, while also putting the clamps on Mitchell in the final three terms.

Hart was one of four players to finish with three goals for West Coast, who were still without spearhead Peter Sumich and had a goalless performance from Craig McGrath up forward.

Hart, Ugle, Heady and Karl Langdon all booted three goals, while Chris Lewis could have had a day out but could only return an inaccurate 2.4. The Eagles spread the load of the scoreboard, with 12 Eagles kicking majors.

Dean Kemp was one of the best for West Coast

Jeff Hogg booted four majors for the Tigers, while Matthew Knights chipped in with three goals to go with 22 touches as his side’s standout player. With Dale Weightman copping a four week ban during the week for a late hit on Fitzroy midfielder Paul Broderick, Craig Lambert stepped into the vacant centreman role picking up a team high 26 disposals.

The major disappointment for West Coast was the likely season-ending injury to half-forward Peter Wilson. Wilson suffered a double fracture in his jaw after he was crashed into by former teammate Richard Nixon during the third quarter, prompting Malthouse to question the incident with the field umpires during the three-quarter time break.

After the match, Malthouse expressed happiness over the win, but admitted that his side needed to show a lot more improvement.

“We have a fair way to go to be the side we all want to be.”

“The true test is against the top sides. They are the ones that expose the team’s old mannerisms.”

Interestingly, Richmond coach Kevin Bartlett agreed with Malthouse’s summation that West Coast had plenty to improve on. “I didn’t think the Eagles played well at all. If we could have bolstered our side with some of our injured players, we could have made it a lot tougher.”

The Eagles remained third on the ladder following the win, but joined the Magpies on points, after Collingwood fell to Essendon in a top-of-the-table clash.

Such was the anticipation for the match, in what was strongly predicted as the Grand Final preview, the AFL broadcast the game live on television into Victoria – the first time a match had been shown live against the gate, excluding Grand Finals, since 1970.

And the match didn’t disappoint, as Essendon withstood a late Magpie fightback and a debilitating injury list to hold on for a six point victory. The Bombers broke out to a six goal lead by early in the second term and still held a 28 point lead with a quarter to play.

But the Bombers had just 15 fit players through the final term as Collingwood booted four goals to close in on the lead. Neither side could find the goals in the final ten minutes of the game, as Collingwood relentlessly attacked and Essendon resiliently defended.

James Manson had two simple chances late in the game to put the Magpies in front, but butchered both opportunities, allowing Essendon to hold on at the final siren. The result meant Essendon held onto their spot at the top of the ladder, but were now a game clear of the Magpies and Eagles.

Melbourne continued their push for the double chance when they coasted to a 67 point win over Sydney. Ricky Jackson and Darren Bennett combined for 11 majors as the Demons primed themselves ahead of a trip to Perth to take on West Coast in a crucial game for both sides.

The Hawks rounded out the top five with an impressive 36 point win over St Kilda, which all but snuffed out the Saints’ finals chances. A nine-goal second term proved the difference in the game, with Jason Dunstall booting five goals for the victors and Tony Lockett four in the battle of the heavyweight forwards.

Footscray appeared to be the last team fighting for a finals spot after North Melbourne defeated Carlton by 34 points. The Kangaroos kicked six goals to nil in the opening term and maintained their lead through the remainder of the match, leaving both clubs sitting two games behind Hawthorn with four matches to play.

The Bulldogs leapt up to sixth, one win behind the Hawks, when they got the job done against Fitzroy, winning by 35 points. In the other match in the round, Brisbane climbed off the bottom of the ladder when they thrashed a pathetic Geelong by eleven goals. Roger Merrett booted eight goals for the Bears, with the result relegating the Swans to the foot of the table.

1990 Rewind: Eagles Caught On The Hop

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MCG Woes Return

West Coast Eagles coach Mick Malthouse blasted his players ‘very soft’ performance, when they succumbed to a 28 point loss to North Melbourne at the MCG.

Sitting equal top, the Eagles had entered the match as hot favourites against a Kangaroos side who were on a six game losing streak, without a win since round 3.  

Malthouse had warned his players not to take the stumbling Kangaroos lightly, and it seemed the Eagles players had heeded their coach’s instructions when they booted the opening four goals of the game. But from there North Melbourne owned the contest and the ball, edging their way to the lead by half-time and then pulling away through the second half.

“We were second to the ball, did not run and allowed North Melbourne to dictate terms totally”, a furious Malthouse said after the game. “We are very soft.”

“Unfortunately, this seems to be the norm when we are beaten.”

North Melbourne full forward John Longmire booted eight goals in the win, matching his effort from nine days earlier when he led New South Wales to one of the great upsets in Australian football, over the powerhouse Victorian side in the state-of-origin.

Longmire had four goals by midway through the second term, forcing Malthouse to shift Murray Rance to full back, in place of Michael Brennan, but Longmire remained a strong focal point for the Kangaroos up forward. Jose Romero provided the supporting act, kicking five goals from 26 disposals in a clear best on ground display.

Tagger Dwayne Lamb would have been assigned with the job of minding Romero, but was one of three players unavailable for the Eagles, following their win in the heavy slog conditions over Geelong just five days earlier.

Lamb was ruled out with a calf complaint, while Peter Wilson was unavailable after straining a hamstring the week before. John Worsfold would then be a late withdrawal ahead of the bounce, with Don Pyke, Dean Turner and Troy Ugle the three inclusions.

North Melbourne made a staggering seven changes to the side that was comprehensively thrashed by Collingwood to the tune of 80 points. Alastair Clarkson was ruled out with concussion, while Ross Smith, Peter German, Ian Fairley, Donald McDonald, Anthony Stevens and Warwick Angus were all dropped.

Kangaroos coach Wayne Schimmelbusch turned to youth, bringing in Liam Pickering, Leigh Tudor, Craig Sholl, Shaun Smith and Mark Brayshaw. Ruckman Michael Gallagher was selected for his first game with the club after switching from Carlton in the off-season, while ‘veteran’ Matthew Larkin was also brought into the side.

Such was the youth of the Kangaroos, Larkin was the only player in the side with more than 60 games experience, while nine players had played less than 20.

John Longmire proved too good for both Michael Brennan and Murray Rance, on his way to a match haul of eight goals.

The Eagles started strongly with John Annear and Scott Watters providing plenty of drive through the middle. Karl Langdon provided the target up forward, booting two goals for the term as West Coast raced to a 22 point lead.

However North Melbourne kicked the final two goals of the quarter to reduce the Eagles advantage to 12 points, before taking control after quarter time.

Wayne Schwass and Matthew Larkin imprinted themselves into the game, John McCarthy closed down the dangerous Langdon and the ruck pairing of Mark Hepburn and Gallagher got on top of Phil Scott.

With the game delicately poised at half-time, Jose Romero stepped up. Romero gathered the ball at will around the ground and also hit the scoreboard, with the Eagles unable to find a match-up to quell his influence.

Conversely, the Eagles lacked any substantial contributors through the middle.

Peter Matera struggled to find the ball, Annear faded out of the game and Dean Turner could neither find the ball, nor limit Larkin in a defensive role.

In fact, only a handful of Eagles gave a solid showing.

In just his seventh AFL game, Brett Heady showed he had all the makings of an impressive career, picking up 28 disposals and taking 13 marks playing predominantly through the middle. Malaxos finished with 23 touches through the centre and Chris Mainwaring tried to bring run to the Eagles game on the wing.

Peter Sumich finished with six goals, but many came towards the end of the match when the result was already safely in the Kangaroos keeping.

The defeat, along with several other key results over the weekend meant that four teams shared equal spot at the close of Round 10. With Collingwood easily defeating league-leaders Melbourne by 52 points and Essendon thrashing Sydney by 15 goals, the Demons, Eagles, Magpies and Bombers were all equal on points.

Essendon moved to top spot, and premiership favouritism, with their thumping win over the Swans putting them 10 percent clear. Melbourne sat second, ahead of West Coast and Collingwood, with just 3.3% separating the three sides.

St Kilda completed the top five after they beat a terrible Brisbane outfit by 77 points, with Stewart Loewe kicking six goals. The Saints had opened up a 73 point lead by half-time, before coasting through the second half to record their largest win since an 89 point triumph over Richmond in 1972.  

The Saints took their position at the expense of Hawthorn, after they suffered a shock 14 point loss to Fitzroy at Princes Park. Carlton also missed a chance to climb the ladder when they lost to lowly Richmond by 23 points at the MCG, in David Cloke’s 300th AFL game.

Geelong arrested their slide when they came out on top by two points over Footscray. With Gary Ablett back in the side, the Cats bounced to a five goal lead at the first change, courtesy of four first-quarter goals to Ablett. Slowly, the Bulldogs worked their way back into the game and by midway through the third term, had opened up a 17 point lead. However, the Cats found something extra to will themselves back into the lead and end a three-game losing streak.  

As the battle for the finals, and specifically the double chance, tightened up, Malthouse forecast that the result could prove costly.

“At the end of round 22, they (the players), may rue the night they gave up the opportunity against North Melbourne.”

1990 Rewind: Pluggered

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Lockett Burst Brings Eagles Back to Earth

A week on from their impressive dismantling of the Magpies, the Eagles were given a fierce reality check in a 68 point defeat to St Kilda, led by spearhead Tony Lockett.

Lockett finished with nine goals – six of which came in a devastating burst in the second term when the Saints were kicking into a howling wind, all but sealing the contest.

West Coast made just the one change to the team that accounted for Collingwood in Round 1, with Chris Lewis returning to the line up from injury. Lewis hadn’t played since aggravating his hamstring against North Melbourne in the Eagles second Fosters Cup match.

Lewis replaced Peter Matera, who managed just nine disposals in a quiet debut the week before. Stand-in captain John Worsfold held his spot despite sporting strapping around his thigh at training during the week and again led the team in the absence of Steve Malaxos.

The Saints also made the one change to the team that defeated Footscray in the opening round. Captain Danny Frawley returned after being a late withdrawal the week before, with Ian Muller making way.

Heading into the game, Malthouse made no secret of the danger Lockett posed, with the burly full forward the difference in the previous meeting between the two sides. In the only meeting between the two sides in 1989, Lockett booted 12 of the Saints 18 goals in a 35 point win.  

The Saints scored first use of the wind, but the Eagles did well to stay within reaching distance at quarter time. Karl Langdon opened the scoring, before the Saints finished with the last 10 scoring shots in the quarter, for an inaccurate 4.6.

24 points down at the first break was an acceptable margin given the wind advantage and Lockett had managed just one major for the term as the Eagles employed a loose man in defence to block his space. Michael Brennan was given the role on Lockett, teaming with Murray Rance to regularly double-team Lockett.

West Coast abandoned the tactic at the start of the second term kicking with the wind, leaving Lockett one-out with Brennan. Peter Sumich booted the opening goal when he was left alone in the goal square to reduce the Saints lead to 18 points.

Andrew Lockyer fell short in his attempt on goal moments later, before Chris Mainwaring blew a golden opportunity when he overran the ball in front of goal. The Eagles had much of the play early in the quarter as they worked their way into the contest.

Then ‘Plugger’ ripped the game apart.

With the Saints getting on top through the midfield, Lockett kicked five of the next six goals in the game, with only a long range effort from Murray Rance, breaking the run.

Lockett powered through the Eagles defence, often marking against multiple defenders in the air and in one instance, brushing aside two Eagles as he soccered the ball through at the top of the goal square.

Ruckman Damien Kitschke added a sixth goal for the term for the Saints when he was found unmarked in front of goal by Dean Rice, before Lockett booted his seventh goal for the match – and sixth goal in the quarter – when he was paid a juggled contested mark.

The Saints had booted seven goals to two against the wind to take a commanding 58 point lead into the main break. Their lead increased to 78 at the final change, before the Eagles limited some of the damage with a five goal final quarter.

Murray Rance took over from Brennan on Lockett in the second half, holding the full forward to just two second half majors. Still, Lockett finished with an impressive match haul of 9.4 from 18 disposals and 12 marks, making it 19 goals in two weeks after opening the season with a bag of 10 against the Bulldogs.

“Let’s face it, the man is awesome. Once he gets his hands on the ball, it’s good night Irene”, Malthouse exclaimed.

While Lockett was terrorising the Eagles defence up one end, the same couldn’t be said at the other, where Frawley and regular forward Stewart Loewe were impenetrable. Frawley held Eagles forward Peter Sumich to just one goal, while Loewe vied with Lockett for best afield honours as he continually intercepted many of the Eagles’ forward thrusts.

Loewe finished with 31 disposals and 15 marks in a dominant performance at centre half back. The Eagles could not find a way through their half forward line, with Murray Rance, Andrew Lockyer, Karl Langdon and Phil Scott all tried with little success.

The Saints were also well served by a number of recruits. Damien Kitschke – in just his second AFL game – was too strong in his duel with fellow second gamer Dean Irving, often providing the Saints midfield with first use at the stoppages.

Kitschke finished with 25 disposals, seven marks, 14 hit-outs and a goal, many of his possessions coming as he sat behind the play when West Coast kicked with the wind. Tim Pekin gathered a career best 38 disposals in just his second game at Moorabbin, after switching across from Fitzroy ahead of the 1990 season.

Pekin was particularly damaging early as St Kilda built their lead, with John Annear brought onto the ground in a bid to quell his influence. Grant Lawrie and Jim Krakouer were others to impress in their second games with the Saints, after crossing from Fitzroy and North Melbourne respectively, collecting 22 and 21 possessions.

Krakouer had shone in his club debut the week before with 36 disposals, earning the tag of Dwayne Lamb, but still having moments of magic. Peter Russo (32 disposals and a goal) and Nathan Burke (31 disposals) were other major ball-winners through the midfield.

And with Lockett garnering much of the attention of the West Coast defence, Rod Owen was allowed to slip under the radar across half forward, booting 4.4 from 21 disposals.

Ken Sheldon – who had made it two wins from two games in charge at the Saints – lauded his side’s second quarter into the wind. “It was a tremendous effort by the players.”

“The second quarter was one of the best quarters of football you would see anywhere. Our players have proved to themselves that they can match it with anybody.”

For West Coast, there were too few players who contributed.

Dean Laidley was arguably the Eagles best player in his negating role on Nicky Winmar at half back. Winmar still tallied 23 disposals, but didn’t have the impact he was renowned for, while Laidley finished as the Eagles leading disposal getter with 27.

Don Pyke booted three second half goals as the Eagles major goal kicker, while Guy McKenna was dependable at half back. Peter Wilson put on a second strong showing at his new club as one of the few Eagles to bring physicality to the game.

Peter Wilson was one of the few performers for West Coast on a poor day

“I’m totally at a loss”, Malthouse said. “I’ll talk to the players as individuals. But there is no magic formula.”

“There was a complete lack of pressure on their runners.”

The turnaround in performance wasn’t the only concern for West Coast out of the match. Chris Lewis, in his return from injury, failed to last a quarter when he succumbed to an ankle complaint. Michael Brennan suffered a groin injury and Laidley played out the game with a corked calf.

Karl Langdon was placed on report for striking Tim Pekin with a forearm to the head.

The result also continued the Eagles’ poor record in Melbourne. The Eagles had now won just five games from 28 matches in Victoria, with Malthouse declaring changes would be made to arrest the horror record away from home.

West Coast Demolish Cats For 1994 Flag

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Two Out Of Three Ain’t Bad For Eagles

West Coast reinstated themselves as the kings of the competition when they crushed Geelong by 80 points to win the 1994 Grand Final.

Two years after an historic first flag, the Eagles steamrolled the Cats to their second premiership, erasing the disappointment of a failed 1993 season.

Dean Kemp claimed the Norm Smith medal for best afield and Tony Evans repeated his 1992 haul of three goals as West Coast booted their highest score in over two years.

Traditionally recognised as a defence-oriented side, the Eagles racked up 43 shots on goal in the Grand Final, a week after they posted 37 scoring shots against Melbourne. Ten Eagles in total hit the scoreboard as West Coast recorded the fourth largest winning margin in Grand Final history.

For the Cats, the defeat was their third loss in the season decider in six seasons, having gone down to the Eagles by 28 points in 1992 and the Hawks by six in 1989.

A shattered Malcolm Blight could offer no explanation after the match, saying there was ultimately nothing his side could do. “I could say a million things about what we might have done or could have done. But at the end of the day they were 80 points better than us, which is pretty hard to cop really.”

Eagles coach Mick Malthouse admitted he sympathised with the Cats, but was equally ecstatic with his side’s performance.

“I just love seeing the day for the club and all the players… I get a bigger kick out of seeing the players enjoy themselves.”

West Coast made just one change from the preliminary final, with Ashley McIntosh coming back into the team after missing with a knee injury. Mitchell White was the player to make way, after coming into the side as McIntosh’s replacement, but remained an outside chance on the morning of the game as West Coast debated whether to remove one of their ruckman.

However, the pair of David Hynes and Ryan Turnbull was retained to tackle John Barnes who was openly struggling with a lower leg injury. Geelong remained unchanged from their last-gasp six point win over North Melbourne, with Grant Tanner ruled out earlier in the week in his bid to recover from an ankle injury.

McIntosh started in defence on Bill Brownless, with Michael Brennan tasked with minding Gary Ablett. The Cats tried to throw the Eagles defence early, starting Ablett on the wing but he quickly moved to the goal square after failing to have an impact.

In a reverse to the 1992 meeting, it was West Coast who had the fast start, booting the first three goals in the game. Tony Evans, Chris Lewis and Shane Bond all kicked majors as the Eagles jumped to a 20 point lead.

West Coast had had all of the play out of the middle of the ground but the momentum of the game soon changed when Geelong piled on four goals in eight minutes. Tim McGrath and Michael Mansfield provided the dash off half back for the Cats with Paul Couch opening the Cats account.

Three more goals followed in quick time to give Geelong a seven point lead, before Brett Heady settled the Eagles just before quarter time to reduce the Cats lead to one point at the first change.

It would prove to be the only period of ascendency Geelong would have in the game.

West Coast resumed control at the start of the second term and only poor kicking on goal prevented the Eagles from having the game won by half time. Peter Wilson kicked consecutive goals to start the quarter as West Coast camped the ball in their forward half.

The Eagles created confusion at the Geelong kick-ins when they changed tack from their usual one-on-one set up to a zone defence. The usually precise Mansfield and Ken Hinkley were undecided with their re-entries preventing clean getaways from their back half, which had been a trademark through their finals campaign.

Twice in the second quarter West Coast picked off their kick-ins. Tony Evans intercepted a Ken Hinkley pass to mark and goal, before then having an intercepting hand that rebounded to Peter Sumich allowing the Eagles full forward to send the ball back over his opponent in Stephen O’Reilly.

The Eagles continued their dominance of general play but, remarkably, when Bill Brownless booted his third goal midway through the third term, the Cats were still within touching distance trailing by just 18 points.

However, three majors to Dean Kemp, Brett Heady and Peter Sumich extended their lead to six goals by three-quarter time and Geelong’s slimmer of Hope was all but gone.

The last quarter was a celebration for West Coast, as they slammed on eight goals to one to demoralise the opposition and the majority of the pro-Geelong crowd.

Symbolic of the day for West Coast and for their Norm Smith medallist Dean Kemp, their 17th goal came about purely by accident. Kemp’s kick inside 50 was intended for Chris Lewis who was crunched out of marking the ball by Tim McGrath, only for the ball to carry on its path and bounce harmlessly through for another goal.

Kemp was sublime for the Eagles on a day when they had a healthy number of contributors. The Eagles centreman had 23 disposals and booted two goals to outpoint Geelong captain Mark Bairstow, who had a dirty day. It also meant that Bairstow finished with the inglorious honour of once again playing on the Norm Smith medal, after lining up on Peter Matera’s wing in his five goal performance of 1992.

Dean Kemp was best afield for West Coast

Don Pyke collected 26 possessions through the middle and just had the edge over Geelong’s Paul Couch. One of Geelong’s prime movers was relegated into a defensive role as he tried to curb the influence of the Eagles centreline.

The Eagles defence was as impregnable as ever, led by Glen Jakovich (20 possessions) and Guy McKenna (23) across half back. Jakovich played his own game standing in the way of Geelong’s forward entries and proving too strong for both Steven Handley and David Mensch. McKenna provided the run from the backline as he outclassed Adrian Hickmott.

Michael Brennan blanketed Gary Ablett, with the Geelong superstar managing just one goal from five disposals and David Hart had the better of Leigh Tudor in the back pocket. Geelong’s only winner in their forward half was Billy Brownless, who exorcised some of his demons from the 1992 Grand Final when he was humbled by Ashley McIntosh.

Brownless kicked four goals for the Cats – he was the only Geelong player to kick a goal after quarter time – and took one of the great Grand Final marks when he soared over McIntosh and managed to hold onto the ball from a second attempt.

Michael Mansfield was arguably the Cats best player with 21 disposals out of defence and having the better of Shane Bond, while Tim McGrath also did his best to withstand the avalanche. Garry Hocking finished with 20 possessions after being forced off during the first term with a heavy cork and returning to the ground in the second half with heavy padding around his upper leg.

But it was a day that belonged to West Coast.

15 members of the 1992 triumph were now dual premiership players, while there was redemption for David Hynes and David Hart, who were the unlucky stories from two years earlier.

And even with two of the heroes from 1992, in Peter Sumich and Peter Matera, having subdued outings, there were plenty of others who stepped up. Sumich and Matera combined for 11 goals in the clubs first flag as West Coast had just four goal kickers for the day. This time around, nearly half of the team kicked goals, as the likes of Chris Lewis, Brett Heady and Jason Ball provided strong targets up forward.

Chris Waterman came onto the ground early in the second term after Chris Mainwaring was forced off with a corked hip and put in one of his finest performances with 18 disposals and two final quarter goals (to go with four behinds). Mainwaring himself was able to return to the field and pick up 18 disposals.

Mick Malthouse even broke with his own tradition in heading down to the bench with three minutes remaining. Malthouse had been reluctant to leave the box two years earlier, despite the urging of his coaching team, but with the game well in his side’s keeping, the Eagles coach revelled in the celebrations boundary side.

Malthouse admitted that he knew his side were home during the third quarter.

“We expected at some stage Geelong to give us a big quarter like they had over the last three or four weeks, so we were ready for it. We stuck to our basics, not to allow them to get that one quarter of football in.”

“At half-time I thought if we maintained our pressure, and we could hold them, we could do the job,” Malthouse said.

“So I guess three quarters of the way through the third quarter I thought we had them.”

Since taking over as senior coach at the end of 1989, Malthouse had steered the Eagles to no lower than fourth in five seasons, which now included two premierships from three Grand Final appearances.

The Eagles had massacred the Cats in one of the most emphatic premierships of the modern era and with that staked their claim as the pre-eminent club of the AFL.

1994 Rewind: Eagles Class Shines In Wet

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West Coast swept aside the Fitzroy Lions with an easy 66 point win at the Western Oval. Fitzroy were held to just two behinds after half-time, unable to break through the Eagles hardened defence in wet and heavy conditions.

On a cold, wintry afternoon where a crowd of just 5,334 braved the conditions, Chris Lewis provided the shine with 16 disposals and three first half goals, as well as having a hand in several others. Peter Sumich also finished with three goals as he continued to build his match fitness from consecutive hamstring injuries.

The Eagles strong performance came despite missing several key players. Brett Heady was never a chance of lining up after dislocating his shoulder the week before against Richmond, while Chris Mainwaring (hamstring) and Chris Waterman (foot) were ruled out during the week.

John Worsfold was given an extra week to recover from his groin problem, as was Tony Evans who had a back complaint. The Eagles consequently made four changes at the selection table, with Michael Brennan returning from injury, and fringe players Matt Clape, Brendan Krummel and Paul Symmons all earning call-ups.

Damien Hampson was initially dropped, alongside injured trio Heady, Mainwaring and Waterman, but earned a reprieve ahead of the opening bounce when David Hynes pulled out.

Krummel’s selection marked his first Eagles appearance in over a year, but it didn’t come without controversy. After being named in the Eagles squad on Thursday night, Krummel became the centre of an investigation over an incident from the previous weeks WAFL derby between East Fremantle and South Fremantle.

Young Bulldog Owen Woods was collected behind the play, suffering a broken jaw in several places, and South Fremantle officials pointed the finger at Krummel. The Bulldogs lodged an official complaint with the WAFL and demanded that Krummel be charged, with Woods expected to miss the remainder of the season after undergoing surgery.

However, the WAFL tribunal were unable to determine whether there would be a case to answer, leaving Krummel free to play with West Coast. Krummel, for his part, said that he knew nothing of the incident.

The Lions dropped four players in response to their narrow loss to Brisbane the week before, with Tom Kavanagh, Danny Morton, James Manson and Nick Mitchell all losing their place. Rick Lyon, Brett Cook, Trent Cummings and Mark Zanotti were the four inclusions, but Zanotti and Cummings then became late withdrawals ahead of the match. Their spots were in turn taken by David Bain and Marcus Seecamp.

Brendan Krummel returned to the Eagles line-up for the first time in over a year

Despite the wet conditions, Malthouse started three talls in the Eagles forward line, as he looked to expose the depleted Fitzroy defence. Ashley McIntosh and Jason Ball took their spots across half forward, with Peter Sumich taking his regular spot in the goal square.

Fitzroy had first use of the wind, but the Eagles got first blood when Lewis soccered home from the goal square. The Lions held on for much of the quarter, but a three goal burst in time-on put West Coast out to a 17 point lead at the first change and there was never any coming back for the Lions from there.

The Eagles would extend their lead to 26 by the major break, then leading by 47 at three quarter time and finally running out 66 point winners as Fitzroy failed to register a second-half major. In fact, the Lions remained scoreless after half-time until the dying minutes of the last term when they kicked consecutive behinds.

When the game was there to be won, Lewis was a cut above most others on the field, proving a constant danger and giving Fitzroy defender Steven Stretch the run-around. Peter Matera added the flashes of brilliance, getting the better of Michael Dunstan on the wing, while down back the Eagles defence proved impenetrable.

Michael Brennan held Darren Wheildon to just one goal, while Guy McKenna, Glen Jakovich and Mitchell White all shut out their opponents in a complete display.

The win further enhanced this Eagles group with the club not always renowned for their performances in the wet. However, the win over Fitzroy was the fourth win in wet weather after victories over St Kilda, Essendon and Richmond in recent weeks, all of which were played in the rain.

The performance impressed Fitzroy coach Robert Shaw, declaring West Coast as ‘the best team I have seen in those conditions’.

Eagles coach Mick Malthouse acknowledged that the conditions suited the more developed Eagles against a young Fitzroy outfit. “Jarrod Molloy is a good marking player so the conditions didn’t suit him. Chris Johnson has great pace but is still finding his way.”

“We had a lot of experienced players in the midfield.”

Shaw though was far more circumspect over the difference between the two sides. “They played the percentages and followed the basic principles a lot better than us.”

“And they did it for longer and more often.”

While Lewis and Matera were the polish up forward and around the wings, Dean Kemp and Don Pyke provided the grunt through the midfield. Kemp finished with 28 disposals and a goal while Pyke had 30 through the centre. Ashley McIntosh had 18 disposals, four marks and booted 2.2 across half forward, while Glen Jakovich collected 20 touches across half back.

Paul Roos was clearly the best player for Fitzroy, gathering 31 disposals and booting a goal in an intriguing battle with Craig Turley through the middle. Jim Wynd also found plenty of the ball, finishing with 29 disposals and joined Roos as one of the Lions’ three goal kickers.

The win saw West Coast hold their one game advantage over the Blues, who defeated an inaccurate Hawthorn by 32 points at Princes Park. The Blues, in turn, held their position in second ahead of North Melbourne, with the Kangaroos coming from behind to defeat Footscray by 20 points in a Friday night classic.

Richmond became the benefactors of the losses suffered by the Hawks and the Bulldogs, climbing into the top four after their straight forward win over Sydney. Melbourne were the other big movers, storming into the top eight  for the first time since Round 13. The Demons thumped a faltering Essendon by 77 points, lifting them from ninth to fifth on the ladder as they passed a number of clubs – including the Bombers – with a superior percentage.

Melbourne led a group of five teams who all had nine wins as the race for the bottom half of the top eight continued to tighten. The Cats rose to sixth after they thrashed Adelaide, with Hawthorn and Footscray filling out the rest of the finals positions. The Magpies slipped to ninth due to having the bye.

While West Coast were all but guaranteed finals and strengthened their position on a top two finish and two home finals, the fallout for Fitzroy was substantial.

Robert Shaw resigned as coach in the days following the Eagles defeat, although he agreed to coach out the remainder of the season as the Lions continued to be the centrepiece of merger discussions. Speculation suggested that a deal with either Brisbane or Melbourne was imminent, leading Fremantle to claim they should be given first right to Fitzroy players as part of their inaugural 1995 squad.

The comments angered president Dyson Hore-Lacy, who had already been vocal about the Dockers’ attempts to lure Paul Roos west with a ‘substantial’ offer, which included the captaincy. Hore-Lacy remained resolute about Fitzroy’s future, declaring the club wouldn’t hold back from launching legal action against any AFL club who tried to poach their players while under contract.

Hore-Lacy also scoffed at the idea the club would head interstate, saying a merger with the Bears would be ‘like taking the last chair on the Titanic.’

1994 Rewind: Eagles Fall Short Against Crows

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Adelaide kept their flagging finals hopes alive, while the Eagles’ grip on top spot loosened slightly, after the Crows defeated West Coast by four points at Football Park.

Peter Matera had a chance to win the game with only seconds remaining in the game, but his running shot from deep in the pocket missed narrowly, resulting in the Eagles’ fourth defeat of the season.

For the second time in five weeks, a third-gamer proved to be the Eagles undoing. Matthew Kluzek gave Chris Waterman the run-around after coming onto the ground during the second quarter when Nigel Smart limped off with a hamstring strain. The small forward booted five of the Crows 12 goals and proved a constant threat as part of a pacy Adelaide forward line.

The loss saw Carlton join West Coast at the top of the ladder after the Blues beat Collingwood in a blockbuster clash at the MCG. Carlton’s 43 point win saw them jump up to 12 wins from 16 games, level with West Coast, although the Eagles remained top on percentage. 

North Melbourne climbed back up to third when they easily accounted for St Kilda, passing the Hawks who fell to Melbourne. Like Adelaide, the Demons were able to stay in finals contention with the 38 point victory, while Footscray moved back into the top eight – at the expense of Geelong – with a 28 point win over the Cats.

Richmond climbed up to fifth on the ladder, on the back of their sixth straight win, when they defeated the Bears at the GABBA and Essendon moved to sixth on the ladder after they thrashed Fitzroy. The Magpies dropped from fourth to seventh after their loss to Carlton.

Leading into the game, the Eagles were almost unbackable favourites with the two clubs tracking different paths in 1994. While West Coast had sat at the top of the table for much of the year, the Crows had fallen well short of expectation after their preliminary final appearance in 1993.

West Coast made just one change, with Brett Spinks coming back into the line-up after being a late withdrawal the week before. Tony Godden was the player to make way. The Crows though made three changes in response to the ten goal thumping from Carlton the week before.

Andrew Jarman was ruled out with a groin injury, while Rodney Maynard and Martin McKinnon were dropped. However, McKinnon would get a reprieve before the first bounce when Simon Tregenza was ruled out with illness. Wayne Weidemann, Nick Pesch and Jonathan Ross were all brought into the Adelaide line-up.

The Eagles would have their own pre-match drama when Guy McKenna undertook a fitness test ahead of the game, after injuring an ankle at training the day before. The half-back flanker passed and was able to take his place.

The Crows got the early running with the opening two goals in the game, but things started to go awry for the home side.

Jonathan Ross dislocated a kneecap inside the first 30 seconds of the game, with West Coast taking charge of the game, mostly through the efforts of Don Pyke. The midfielder tallied 10 possessions (including a goal) and had strong support from Peter Wilson and Guy McKenna.

The Eagles finished with the final four goals of the quarter to take a 12 point lead into the first break. Tony Modra got the Crows on the board early in the second term, but Peter Sumich quickly responded. Adelaide’s injuries woes only worsened when Nigel Smart was forced out of the game, leaving the Crows with just one player left on the bench halfway through the second term.

With the Eagles holding sway, Adelaide coach Graham Cornes swung the board around and the momentum of the game changed. Chris McDermott was moved to the uncustomary role of half-back while Mark Bickley was moved into the middle onto Pyke.

Tony McGuinness broke free of the tag from Drew Banfield to provide some drive out of the middle, while Kluzek similarly got free to boot two second quarter goals. Adelaide stole a one point lead at the main break and then continued on in the third term on the back of Shaun Rehn’s dominance in the ruck.

Rehn completely outpointed Ryan Turnbull and Jason Ball in the ruck and around the ground as the Eagles struggled to win the ball at the stoppages. With Dean Kemp well held by Wayne Weidemann and Pyke and Mainwaring both having little impact after strong starts, the Eagles forward line were getting no supply.

Matt Kluzek booted a further two goals for the term as Adelaide kicked four goals to two to stretch out their lead to 11 points.

With much of his side ineffective, it was Mick Malthouse’s turn to throw the magnets around. Glen Jakovich went forward, with Ashley McIntosh moved onto Modra after Michael Brennan went off injured. Guy McKenna went to a half forward flank and Peter Matera went into the centre with Malthouse sending Kemp to McGuinness in an attempt to break the Weidemann tag.

When Kluzek slotted his fifth goal at the five minute mark of the final term, Adelaide led by four goals and the game seemed done.

The Eagles, though, roared back into the contest after Jakovich kicked a long bomb. Brett Heady and Tony Evans followed with goals and the Eagles had dragged themselves back within a goal of the home side.

But as West Coast sought a winner, they could find only behinds. Guy McKenna, David Hart and Peter Sumich all missed shots on goal, before Matera’s final chance seconds before the final siren sounded for an Adelaide win.

A relieved Cornes hailed his side’s victory in the face of a growing injury list. Cornes had been under immense pressure in recent weeks, with speculation he was likely to be out of a job if Adelaide failed to make finals, but for the moment the Crows coach was happy to just to get some self-belief back at the club.

“Coaching the Crows is like riding a roller coaster when we win the crowd go overboard and when we lose they can be very unforgiving. The emotional highs and lows are unbelievable,” Cornes said.

The Crows had been well served by veterans Chris McDermott and Tony McGuinness who finished with 33 and 32 disposals respectively, while younger midfidlers Mark Bickley and Mark Riccuito were also influential.

Riccuito chimed in with two goals, along with Modra and Anthony Ingerson as multiple goalscorers behind Kluzek. Shaun Rehn was a clear best on ground with 21 disposals, 10 marks and 31 hit-outs.

David Hart finished as the leading ballwinner for West Coast with 25, while Pyke, Mainwaring and Wilson all tallied 21. Peter Sumich and Brett Heady each booted three goals, but West Coast lacked any genuine winners up forward.

A circumspect Malthouse admitted that it would have been the ‘steal of the season’ if West Coast had gotten over the line, in what was his 250th game as coach across both Footscray and the Eagles.

“We were out-muscled, out-played and beaten badly by a very talented football side. To be undermanned and then lose a couple of players and still win… they’re going to be a real threat.”

“They were terrific, they were far too good for us,” Malthouse declared.

Reflecting on his milestone, Malthouse acknowledged the journey his coaching career had taken.

“… I suppose reaching 250 (games) makes you think you’ve been around a fair while. There have been ups and downs and probably more downs than ups, but it has been great to be involved.”