EAGLES HOLD OFF LIONS TO SEAL SECOND
WEST Coast coach Adam Simpson was upbeat about his side’s finals prospects after they stitched up second spot on the AFL ladder with a breezy 26-point win over Brisbane.
It was an ideal tune-up for the Eagles, who fended off a Lions outfit that had saved one of their sloppiest performances all year for last.
The win ensured West Coast will play two finals at Optus Stadium, starting with a qualifying final against Collingwood.
If they’re good enough, the Eagles won’t have to travel again until the grand final, with the likes of Josh Kennedy and Lewis Jetta in line to return from injury.
“I’m really, really proud of our players,” Simpson said. “They’ve been fronting up all year ... they went through a bit of adversity in the back half, losing some games, losing Nic (Naitanui) and the whole (Andrew) Gaff incident was difficult. To lock away top two, I’m very ecstatic.”
West Coast midfield trio Dom Sheed (30 disposals), Jack Redden (29 disposals) and Luke Shuey (27 disposals) ran riot. Up forward, Jack Darling kicked four goals while Jamie Cripps and Liam Ryan chipped in with three apiece.
For Brisbane, it was a disappointing end to a promising season.
West Coast killed off the contest in just the second term, booting four goals and restricting the Lions to two behinds to lead by 35 points at the main break.
“That’s been a little bit of a trend of ours against some of the better sides in the comp, they just get us in a patch,” Lions coach Chris Fagan said. “I think West Coast were probably hoping they could steamroll us but our guys showed great character.”