However, key Eagle Daniel Kerr appears to have seriously injured his right hamstring, the midfielder going down in the dying minutes of the second term and not returning.
West Coast coach John Worsfold said early indications are the hamstring injury was not as serious as those suffered by St Kilda captain Nick Riewoldt and Hawthorn’s Josh Gibson in round three.
The Eagles booted nine unanswered goals from late in the first term to early in the third to set up an unassailable 52-point lead, eventually winning 15.11 (101) to 11.12 (78).
The Dons added respectability to the scoreboard by kicking five of the game’s last six goals, but they were effectively out of the contest six minutes into the third term.
When the game was alive, West Coast ruck duo Nic Naitanui and Dean Cox dominated the centre square against Bombers David Hille and Patrick Ryder.
Cox put a slow start to the season behind him to have 16 first-half hit-outs, while Naitanui had 11 and provided a handful of magic moments, roving his own taps and sending the Eagles into attack.
Worsfold said Cox, who finished with 30 hit-outs, 19 possessions and a goal, was on track as he works back from extensive post-season groin rehabilitation.
“Full match fitness, he’s still two or three weeks away probably (but) pretty happy with the way he’s progressing,” the coach said. “He’s feeling really good.”
Matt Priddis (30 possessions and seven clearances) and Adam Selwood (19 and 11 tackles) were also key players in West Coast’s match-winning surge, while Andrew Embley pieced a complete game together to finish with 28 possessions, six clearances and six inside-50s.
Captain Darren Glass led the Eagles’ defence superbly in perhaps his best game for the season, with the Bombers forwards, including a goalless Scott Gumbleton, completely nullified.
Essendon midfielder Jobe Watson was fighting a lone battle in the first half, and the skipper finished the game his side’s best with 34 possessions, 19 of which were contested.
Andrew Welsh worked hard and Hille got better as the game went on, but the visitors had too many passengers when the contest was at its fiercest.
“It was a very disappointing night for the football club tonight,” coach Matthew Knights said after the match. “Some of the football we played was appalling.
“We fumbled a lot [and] our disposal by foot was atrocious.
“If you’re not taking the ball cleanly and also turning the ball over once you get it, it’s a recipe for disaster. To be honest with you, I wasn’t even that impressed with the fact we scored goals late.
“You’ve got to perform at your best when the game’s there to be won early and we didn’t do that.”
Naitanui showed a glimpse early of the brilliant patches that would follow, with a stunning clearance leading to a polished Mark LeCras snap within a minute of the opening bounce.
However, the turnovers that have plagued the Eagles early this season were keeping the Dons in the game, with goals to David Zaharakis and Mark Williams coming from West Coast errors.
Zaharakis and Bradd Dalziell, who made a bright start in his second game for West Coast, clashed heads early in the second term, with Dalziell taken from the ground on a stretcher. However, both played on.
Like the Eagles had for the past three rounds, Essendon couldn’t deliver the ball inside 50m with any purpose or precision, letting a brief opportunity to challenge in a tight third term slip.
They added five goals in a meaningless last term, and now face Collingwood at the MCG on Anzac Day with a 1-3 record.
The Eagles face the Sydney Swans at the SCG in round five.
West Coast 5.5 11.8 13.10 15.11 (101)
Essendon 5.1 5.5 6.7 11.12 (78)
GOALS
West Coast: LeCras 4, Kennedy 3, Brown, Cox, Ebert, Embley, Hansen, Naitanui, Rosa, Selwood
Essendon: Ryder 2, Hille 2, Hurley 2, Zaharakis 2, Hooker, Reimers, Williams
BEST
West Coast: Priddis, Cox, Embley, Naitanui, LeCras, Glass, Rosa
Essendon: Watson, Hille, Dyson, Zaharakis, Welsh
INJURIES
West Coast: Kerr (hamstring)
Essendon: Reimers (ankle)
Reports: Nil
Umpires: McBurney, Margetts, Ryan
Official crowd: 38,676 at Subiaco Oval
The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
