Nathan Schmook has taken a look at the areas helping the Eagles believe in their rebuild
WEST Coast has emerged as the best groundball team in the AFL this season as back-to-back wins generate belief in a re-worked game style that is serving as the foundation for a rebuild.
The Eagles’ stripped back gameplan – which focuses on manic pressure, contest, and front half footy – has clicked in impressive wins against Richmond and Fremantle as the team grows confident in its 2024 method.
Across the contest and front half footy elements of their plan, the Eagles have ranked top two in the AFL across all key indicators for rounds five and six, leading the competition for time in forward half.
Using a bigger sample size across the entire season, they have ranked top two for contested possessions, centre bounce clearances and groundballs.
General manager of football Gavin Bell said the players were growing confident in the game style while remaining aware that they have significant work to do as the club continues a rebuild.
“I think by keeping it simple and clear, the players and the coaching staff and the wider footy staff are really aligned on what we’re going after, and we’ve been public in what we’re doing,” Bell told AFL.com.au.
“It’s about the contest, it’s about trying to get the ball in our front half, and it’s about our pressure. So a couple of those areas we’re going well, one or two we’ve still got a fair bit of work to do.
“We understand we’re nowhere near the finished product. We’re seeing some signs of some improvement which we’re all enjoying but we’re also conscious of where we’ve got a lot of work to do to be the team that we want to become.”
| Eagles’ wins – Contest | ||
| Differentials | R5-6 | Rank |
| Contested Possessions | +31.0 | 2nd |
| Groundballs | +24.0 | 2nd |
| Clearances | +8.5 | 2nd |
| Points from Clearance | +22.5 | 1st |
| Eagles’ wins – Territory | ||
| Differentials | R5-6 | Rank |
| Inside 50s | +14.5 | 2nd |
| Time in Fwd Half | +9:27 | 1st |
Coach Adam Simpson and his panel re-designed the Eagles’ game style as a foundation for the rebuild, knowing that they needed “smaller rocks” in place before they could move onto elements of the game like ball movement.
Highlighting the progress made under a new game style, the Eagles’ groundball result against Richmond (+27) was their best result since 2017, while their contested possession win (+38) was their biggest since the 2018 premiership year.
The other trademark obvious in West Coast’s recent spike has been its No.1 focus for this year: to play with passion.
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