WEST Coast is in a rut, and coach Adam Simpson knows it, describing his side's footy as "average" after Saturday's loss to Gold Coast.
The Eagles enter the bye with a 6-5 record after blowing a final-quarter lead against the Suns and losing by three points.
It's their third straight defeat, after losses to Essendon and Greater Western Sydney.
Simpson blamed a lack of composure in the final minutes and singled out poor games from Jack Darling as Mark LeCras as just a couple of his problem areas.
WATCH: Adam Simpson's full post-match media conference
"We've got work to do," the Eagles coach said.
"We need more out of everyone, it's just an average level of performance at the moment."
Simpson was disappointed with a lack of work rate in the first half that saw the Suns chip the ball around and control the tempo of the game.
West Coast was more "assertive" early in the last quarter and kicked four straight goals to hold a 10-point lead with five minutes remaining.
But Gold Coast rallied to kick the game's final two goals – including the eventual winner by Peter Wright with 90 seconds remaining – to snatch victory.
"There were moments in that last few minutes when we lost our composure, and some experienced players didn't handle it too well," Simpson said.
"The consistency of effort and intent the last few weeks has been reasonable but we've got another level we can go to with that.
"We've lost three in a row.
"We haven't been able to close it out last week (against GWS) or this week. We need to find a way."
Without spearhead Josh Kennedy, the Eagles struggled to find a regular avenue to goal or take advantage of their 50 inside 50s.
Elliot Yeo kicked three goals and Josh Hill two, but West Coast's more established forward targets struggled.
Five talking points: Gold Coast v West Coast
"We probably need Darling and LeCras to have a bit more impact than they did today, they didn't score," Simpson said.
"We'll keep working through that.
"There's more we need to touch on rather than just how that (forward line) functions."
