After coming away with a strong victory over Greater Western Sydney, West Coast AFLW coach Michael Prior has attributed Saturday’s tense seven-point victory to his side's preparation and approach.

The Eagles put some concerns about slow starts behind them with a strong first quarter and were able to maintain their pressure for the entirety of the encounter.

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Prior post match v Giants

AFLW Senior coach Michael Prior addresses the media after the round four match against the Giants

“I think our pressure around the footy was outstanding and I thought we got a little bit more overlap run with our ball use,” Prior said post-game.

“Our tackle and hunt is what it came down to and it’s probably our mindset and whether we can go out and deliver for a full four quarters. 

“I just went down the list of every player today and I thought that they all had their moments in that regard so when your team is delivering that and not relying on just one or two players you are going to have a performance like that.”

Despite a strong all-round showing, Prior outlined that the side took away some strong learnings from the victory, including the need to stay disciplined.

“We love the physical side of the game and the girls have a crack and play hard,” he said.

“But when we are giving away free kicks to the opposition inside their forward 50 and inside their front half then it becomes an issue for me.

“We spoke to the players about staying focused and keep delivering what we’ve done for three quarters and they changed their mindset for that last quarter and stuck to task and ultimately got the win for us.”

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - SEPTEMBER 17: Sasha Goranova of the Eagles handballs during the round four AFLW match between the Greater Western Sydney Giants and the West Coast Eagles at GIANTS Stadium on September 17, 2022 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Mark Evans/AFL Photos)

Player mindset has been a huge theme for Prior and his new-look group, noting that it is a huge learning curve for any player after they debut in AFLW.

With the RAC AFLW Derby coming up this Thursday against Fremantle, Prior says his players should just treat it like any other game when it comes to preparing for the rivalry clash.

"The Derby is exciting for us. I think we come into it with the most wins ever and that’s only two so nothing to rave home about,” he said.

“The group will look to improve that record in the upcoming weeks, it just happens to be we have an upcoming Derby back in Perth against Fremantle and we are going in with a bit of confidence.

“Our challenge will be to keep the pressure on and deliver a four-quarter performance from all of our players and we look forward to trying to get that done."