On a sunny Sunday afternoon in March 1987 an eclectic group of young men assembled in the bowels of Subiaco Oval, poised to write the most significant chapter in the history of WA football.
Twenty players from varied backgrounds with equally varied football journeys became the first players to represent the West Coast Eagles.
From captain Ross Glendinning, a North Melbourne Brownlow medallist who cut his teeth at East Perth, to Chris Lewis and Paul Peos two products from WA’s famous victorious 1985 Teal Cup team, it was a diverse combination that took the field in the club’s inaugural match.
Those 20 players took the first momentous steps in what has become a 37-year journey that has seen the Eagles overcome some major hurdles, including significant financial concerns, to win four premierships from seven grand final appearances.
The fledgling Eagles recovered from a 33-point deficit at three-quarter time to defeat Richmond in a remarkable comeback that would be the biggest reversal of fortunes in club history until the epic 2006 turnaround against Geelong (down 54 points in the third term ) at Kardinia Park.
On Sunday the vast majority of that 1987 squad of 35 players will be celebrated by the club as it again prepares to tackle the Tigers.
The squad and senior coach Ron Alexander have been invited to attend the match, observe the pre-game warm-up and then form a guard of honour as the current team runs onto the ground.
Much has changed in the last 37 years, not the least them being the anticipated crowd and the venue itself.
The official attendance on March 29, 1987 was 23,897 though that was something of an educated guess as the turnstiles could not cope with the late flood of fans to the game’s traditional home. With thousands of fans locked out at bouncedown the gates were thrown open.
This weekend’s game will played at arguably Australia’s most sophisticated venue, Optus Stadium and it is anticipated upwards of 45,000 people will be on hand as the Eagles strive to open their account for the 2024 season.
