Season to date
When two Brownlow Medallists depart, as Chris Judd and Ben Cousins did after the 2007 season, there is little wonder this season has been a tough campaign for the Eagles. Add in some untimely injuries to key personnel and West Coast’s current ladder spot of 13th is no great surprise.
The side’s win-loss ratio is 2-8 and they go into this clash 1-2 from their last three, including last week’s 100-point defeat to a rampant Collingwood.
Recent form:
Round 6 – West Coast 11.8 (74) lost to Western Bulldogs 20.14 (134)
Round 7 – West Coast 10.14 (74) lost to Carlton 17.9 (111)
Round 8 – West Coast 12.11 (83) lost to North Melbourne 13.11 (89)
Round 9 – West Coast 14.13 (97) def Adelaide 5.17 (47)
Round 10 – West Coast 10.13 (73) lost to Collingwood 27.11 (173)
Last time out:
Best remembered for the Barry Hall-Brent Staker striking incident, the Eagles were six goals down by half-time and were never likely to trouble the Swans who kept their feet on the pedal to record an emphatic 62-point win.
Eagles forward Ben McKinley with four goals was a standout on the night while the visitors dominated the hit-outs (55-16) courtesy of Mark Seaby and the always-impressive Dean Cox.
Matt Rosa with an eye-catching 23 disposals also shone on a dark night for the Eagles who yielded a telling scoring accuracy of just 25 per cent.
The venue: Subiaco Oval
The Eagles’ record on this ground is good, standing at 4-1 in their previous five clashes with the 2005 premiers.
The coach: John Worsfold
"Woosha" is a revered figure in the West where he has coached the side to a flag in 2006 and played 209 times for the Eagles, including captaining them for eight years. His coaching record to date is 92-60.
Strengths:
Dean Cox is still arguably the best ruckman in the league and midfielders Matt Priddis and Daniel Kerr have shown this is a list with great promise, despite Kerr being subdued by Kieren Jack last time the two sides met.
Missing in action:
Bad news with Matt Rosa sustaining a small fracture to his ankle meaning he’s missing for the next six to eight weeks. Josh Kennedy (knee strain) is also out and Adam Hunter is doubtful after knee bruising. Shannon Hurn (leg) is out for another month. The Eagles are also without hard-nut defender Beau Waters, who misses after his appeal against a two-match suspension for making head-high contact on Collingwood's Shane O'Bree failed.
The key: Pride and profligacy
Worsfold will be looking for a reaction from his players after last week’s 100-point drubbing against the Magpies. And generally these are tight games so scoring accuracy will be vital.
The young gun: Matt Priddis
A real ball magnet in the middle of the park, the 23-year-old picked up 31 disposals last week. From six games this season, 173 disposals at an average of just under 29 per match is pretty impressive.
The questions:
Can the Swans’ ruck duo of Spida Everitt and Darren Jolly make any headway on star ruckman Dean Cox? How will the Eagles react after their worst loss of the season last week to the Pies? And if Sam Butler plays, will his long-awaited return be the spark for the Eagles? Can the Eagles restrict goal sneaks Amon Buchanan and Jarred Moore? How will the home side adjust to the loss of Matt Rosa in the centre?
Did you know?
Matthew Spangher debuted for the Eagles against the Swans in round four.
The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the club.
