WEST Coast might not be playing perfect football, but gun defender Brad Sheppard says the Eagles just need to keep banking wins while they find their "mojo".
Some questioned the reigning premiers' hunger after heavy losses to Port Adelaide and Geelong, and West Coast's doubters weren't silenced following a second-half lapse against Gold Coast last Saturday night.
The Eagles hung on to win by 23 points, improving to 4-3, and while they showed signs of improvement in the contest, frustrating inconsistencies within games continue to hamper their form.
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But Sheppard isn't rushing to hit the panic button, instead looking on the bright side and declaring West Coast has plenty of room for improvement.
"I just the think the competition is so even now," he said.
"We understand we're the reigning premiers, we are hunted and everyone's looking at us a lot more closely this year, but the difference between the top sides and the bottom sides is not much now.
"You only have to be off by a couple of per cent to get whacked. The last couple of weeks we've come up against a couple of good sides who have done that.
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"We're not shying away from the fact we're not playing perfect football this time of the year.
"This is the time of year where you've got to bank the wins and really got to find, I guess, our mojo.
"We've had a couple of thorough reviews over the last few weeks about certain aspects of the game we weren't happy with, and I thought we rectified that – especially the first half on the weekend.
"We feel like we're in a pretty good space as a club."
Sheppard was heartbroken to miss last year's flag after ripping his hamstring in the qualifying final, but has no doubt his premiership-winning teammates are as motivated as ever.
"I think the boys are still really hungry to achieve success. There's a few of us who missed out, but in saying (that) there's 25 blokes who haven't experienced that, so the hunger is still there for the players," he said.
"Understanding, probably as a collective, everyone's probably not playing at their optimal level at the moment but it's only round eight this week, so it's a long year."
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There is no doubting Sheppard's motivation, and the 27-year-old – averaging 21 disposals and eight marks – would arguably be leading the John Worsfold Medal.
Sheppard held in-form Suns forward Alex Sexton to one goal and had 25 touches – used at 96 per cent efficiency – and continues to thrive against the competition's dangerous forwards.
"I love a challenge," Sheppard said.
"My role now is a role I really value and that's challenging myself against the best players in the country and I get a real thrill about that because any contest you lose is generally a goal against.
"When you're living on the edge, I think that gets the best out of myself."
