The West Coast Eagles could again be forced to lean on WAFL players on the club’s COVID Contingency List as it prepares for a tough assignment against Brisbane at the Gabba on Saturday night.
The Eagles continue to battle injury and illness with a number of players nursing ailments after the weekend’s matches and a few players on health and safety watch.
Already defenders Jackson Nelson and Alex Witherden will miss the match against the highly-regarded Lions through the AFL’S health and safety mandate.
Emerging midfielder Xavier O’Neill is in doubt with a knee injury, Willie Rioli (hamstring) is under assessment from the medical staff after being subbed out of the game against Richmond and small forward Zac Langdon hobbled from the ground with an ankle injury in the WAFL game against Peel.
Midfield bull Elliot Yeo is being assessed after suffering a concussion against Port Adelaide nine days ago while forward-ruckman Bailey Williams will be assessed later in the week after missing the Tigers encounter with a hamstring strain.
It is a similar situation with key defender Tom Barrass, who was a late withdrawal on Friday night with a hamstring issue.
More will be known when the club’s medical staff meet tomorrow, with an update scheduled late tomorrow afternoon.
Through the generous support of the WAFL clubs, the Eagles called on five players – Aaron Black (West Perth), Brayden Ainsworth (Perth), Declan Mountford and Angus Dewar (Subiaco) and Stefan Giro (Subiaco) – for the round two clash against North Melbourne.
The Eagles put up a bold performance before losing by 15 points.
