THE INFECTIOUS standards being set by draftees and a new off-season program that prioritised endurance have helped West Coast bridge a fitness gap that emerged during the club's injury-riddled 2022.
The Eagles drew criticism for their physical shape last season in a campaign that started with a raft of pre-season injuries and developed into a full-blown availability crisis.
The need to "reboot" after losing so many players to long-term injuries prompted the Eagles to design a new, simplified off-season program for their players that put a premium on endurance.
The changes were obvious as soon as the players returned in November, starting their training sessions with long blocks of running at Mineral Resources Park before any football work started.
The changes remain obvious now as match simulation training ramps up and the Eagles benefit from having only a small handful of players in rehab for minor injuries, with key forward Jack Darling (ankle) the only major concern after being sent for scans on Friday.
"We just needed to get back to basics and get some good, solid work in, seeing as a number of our guys missed a lot of games over the last couple of years," football manager Gavin Bell told AFL.com.au.
"We felt like we were in a good space last year, but then we hit the cluster. That threw everything out the window and we couldn't get back in front of it.
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"So [the off-season program] really was the by-product of that and the need to reboot our system."
Among the Eagles who missed large chunks of 2022 but are now in good condition are Oscar Allen (zero games last year), Tom Cole (zero), Dom Sheed (one), Elliot Yeo (five), Nic Naitanui (eight) and Jeremy McGovern (10).
The club's first pick in the 2021 NAB AFL Draft, Campbell Chesser, also did not feature due to a serious ankle injury, with the impressive youngster now building towards full training.
After such a disjointed 2022 for the group, Bell said an advantage of the stripped-back summer program was the ability for players to do the work in groups if they wanted to, rather than sticking to complex individualised programs.
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"That was an unplanned benefit of the program that the players saw an opportunity to get the work in together and it's been beneficial," Bell said.
"The ability to train closely together allowed them to remain motivated through it, and they challenged each other and stayed accountable to each other.
"What's critical now is the next month in front of us, because this point last year is when we hit a massive cluster of both soft tissue and collision-based injuries, and then obviously COVID hit."
Coach Adam Simpson and captain Luke Shuey have both noted this pre-season that the Eagles are in the best physical shape they have been in since the 2018 premiership.
Shuey also praised the strength and conditioning team for putting together a program that was "different to years gone by" and allowed the players to train together in large groups.
"The playing group was certainly more driven … it was hard work and I think we're starting to reap some rewards," the skipper said.
Shuey did concede, however, that the group's physical preparation was not up to scratch in 2022 for a variety of reasons.
"When there's smoke there's fire and a lot of people externally were calling us unfit last year. They probably weren't completely off the mark with that suggestion," the Norm Smith medallist said.
"You can't do anything unless you're fit in this game anymore, so our first step over the off-season was making sure we came back in good shape."
After setting a "stretch target" for how the players returned from their off-season, and beating it, the Eagles moved into match simulation training earlier than previous seasons.
Some key additions to the football department have also made an impact, with development manager Steve Trewhella, sports psychologist Matt Burgin and strength and conditioning coach Mark Kilgallon all joining the club in the off-season.
The contributions of the club's young players, however, have been critical in lifting fitness levels across the board.
Pick No.9 Reuben Ginbey this week spoke of his goal to be "AFL ready" by round one, with pick No.14 Elijah Hewett building nicely in recent sessions and enjoying some eye-catching moments with his poise in traffic.
Small forward Noah Long, who was recruited with pick No.58, has been impressive from early in the pre-season, while second-year midfielders Jai Culley and Greg Clark have been among the most impressive runners.
"We've been able to recruit and draft highly-driven players, and when the young guys are starting to set standards with their diligence to the program and the way they're getting after it and trying to improve, that becomes infectious," Bell said.
"There's still lots of work to go, but the kids we have drafted are driven and that flows on to the rest of the group."
