JUNE 2017 was a turning point in the life and career of Jack Darling.

After struggling to exert an influence in a morale-sapping round 11 loss to Gold Coast, the maligned West Coast forward seemed at a football crossroads.

The stumbling Eagles had needed Darling to stand up on the road and lead the attack in star spearhead Josh Kennedy's absence.

But he'd only mustered a team-low eight disposals – five of them clangers – and failed to trouble the scorers.

Critics were lining up, until it was revealed Darling had suffered the heartache of being on the other side of the country when his son, Max, was born prematurely in the early hours on gameday.

Suddenly, his performance made sense.

Twelve months on from that challenging period, Darling has emerged a new man.

He credits fatherhood for a more mature perspective on life, and this season he has developed into the game-breaker many believed he was destined to become.

Darling sits second in the Coleman Medal race (28 goals) after nine rounds, and leads the competition for contested marks (30) and marks inside 50 (34), with the nadir of last year's Suns clash signaling a new beginning. 

"He had a bit of a poorer game that day. Since then he's had a real big focus on being stronger in the contest and winning or halving them," forwards coach Jaymie Graham told AFL.com.au. 

"He actually showed good signs last year, but he probably just wasn't winning as many as he is this year – but he was halving a lot.

"The other thing is his work rate to get to contest, so there's the two elements and, once you're there, being strong."

 

2018

2017

2016

Disposals

15.9

12.0

12.2

Marks

8.2

5.2

5.3

F50 Marks

3.8

2.3

2.3

Contested Marks

3.3

1.5

1.7

Lead Marks

2.1

1.7

1.0

Goals

3.1

1.9

1.9

Shot at Goal Accuracy

65.1%

56.6%

62.0%

1v1 Win %

35.9%

22.0%

27.2%

1v1 Loss %

30.8%

30.0%

34.6%

Tackles

2.8

2.9

2.7

F50 Tackles

1.3

1.6

0.8

Pressure Acts

13.4

15.6

11.6

Even before the Suns game, dropped marks in the 2015 Grand Final and 2016 elimination final losses hung over Darling last season.

But the 25-year-old spoke about embracing the big moments next time they arrived, which he did.

In round 23, he took a stunning goalsquare grab running back with the flight to help the Eagles sneak into finals with victory over Adelaide, before drilling three crucial goals in the elimination final epic against the Power. 

It was a platform to build on, and when Kennedy was out of the side early this year Darling flourished.

He booted nine majors in the first three rounds as the focal point, and has gone to another level again since Kennedy returned.

Thrilled coach Adam Simpson declared Darling boasted "hands of steel" after taking nine marks – five contested – and slotting four goals in the gritty round eight victory over the Giants.

Then, last Sunday, the 191cm forward returned career-bests for marks (15), marks inside 50 (eight), contested marks (six) and goals (six) in a dismantling of reigning premier Richmond. 

"Those first few rounds with JK not in the team (Darling) stepped up with his leadership in the forward line," Graham said.

"It's something he's been working on and he really stood up for the team and I think he proved to himself that he can be that focal point."

Since his comeback, Kennedy has deservedly received credit for creating space to help Darling, in an Eagles' attack – averaging 103 points (AFL No.2) – who are all sacrificing for each other.

Targets inside 50
Jack Darling82
Josh Kennedy70

"They'll all get turns at some point in the game and the fact they're playing selfless footy is really pleasing," Graham said.

"What's been pleasing is to see the two of them working together.

"I think that's made the forward line more of a threat and less predictable to the opposition."

Graham said Darling is fueled by belief he can work over opponents with his athleticism or in the air and, with the star Eagle in "a good space" mentally, he is confident the widespread acclaim won't become a distraction. 

"JD's pretty grounded and I'm not concerned at all about getting ahead of himself," Graham said.

"Probably in the past he's been a bit maligned and there's been some negative reports about the way he goes about things and the way he's performed.

"He's getting a lot of praise, which is great for Jack, but either way we like him and our players to stay balanced.

"He's really clear on his role and his focuses and we haven't seen that change in the first nine rounds.

"He's matured off the field, and we're seeing him get results on the field."