Young Eagles provide hope as West Coast lose another thriller

Welcome to the Western Watercooler, where we digest the talking points from the weekend’s games – and the highlights, frustrations and silver linings WA footy fans can cling to as the season progresses.

As the Dockers put their feet up enjoying the week off, West Coast were involved in another thriller.

For the second week running, the Eagles were involved in a game decided by less than a kick, and for the second week running, they fell just short.

West Coast would feel like they should have more than four wins heading into the bye, losing three games in the past month by one, six and 10-point margins.

West Coast Eagles

What went right? Jobe Shanahan.

It’s bizarre to have a player who didn’t have a kick in the opening half end up being their side’s most influential player by the final siren.

The 19 year-old’s stats at the main break read; two handpasses and a tackle, but a move to the backline helped spark Shanahan into action.

His aerial prowess returned and his ability to read the ball led to a number of intercept marks.

Then thrust into attack, Shanahan booted three goals, and while he missed a late set shot, he calmly slotted a checkside to bring the margin back to just two points which also came from a towering contested park mark.

He ended the game with 11 touches, eight marks and three goals, further highlighting that the 2024 draft product is going to be a star of the future.

What went wrong? Jake Waterman’s goalkicking.

The 28 year-old has battled all season in front of goal, but Saturday his troubles were laid bare.

A converted set shot from 35 metres out in the final minute would have secured the Eagles victory, instead Waterman slammed the ball into the post.

The All Australian forward has kicked 31 goals 37 behinds, sitting 10th on the Coleman Medal standings, while sitting alongside star Cat Jeremy Cameron for most shots on goal this year.

However, from his 75 attempts, Waterman has a goal accuracy of 41.3 per cent - the second lowest in the top 50 goalkickers.

The good news is that Waterman continues to put himself in the right positions to impact games.
Hopefully, he can reset during the bye and return minus the goalkicking yips.

Silver lining: Marcus Herbert.

Just 19 days after joining the club via the mid-season draft, the 23 year-old made an immediate impact on debut.

Herbert showed a degree of comfort at the top level from his first touches, finishing with 15 disposals off half-back.

But his biggest impression came in the final stages of the match when he displayed his toughness.

Herbert, who has spent years in Geelong’s VFL side, put his head over the ball, not flinching as Roo key defender Charlie Comben bared down.

Herbert kept his feet in a bone-crunching bump, while Comben went to ground, drawing praise from teammates and applause from fans.

More efforts like Saturday and Herbert shapes as having a future much longer than the six months he opted for in the mid-season draft.