It has been a long time since Albany was called home. A really long time.

More than 40 years actually. A flowing, curly shoulder-length mullet has been replaced by a grey thatch and a side part. A relatively fit teenager now carries more kilos than he should. The facial contours have spread like Kalgan River subsidiaries.

The journey has been eventful and interesting.

Sport, particularly football, has been a constant companion. An obsession.

The sense of belonging, the tribal nature of being a part of a club has been fulfilling. From country clubs Royals (Albany), Wanderers (Katanning) and Boddington to North Beach in the amateurs, they have all provided purpose. Experiences and direction.

Then came the West Coast Eagles in 1987. As a proud and passionate Western Australian the inclusion of a team from this State in a national competition was irresistible.

To have had a small role to play at this club since 2000. Well, pinch me.

Arriving at work every day surrounded by people striving to be the best they possibly can be is invigorating. One club. One purpose. United in the cause.

Sometimes things don’t go according to plan. And it definitely tests one’s resilience.

That mantra of working hard and reaping benefits doesn’t always ring true. There are 17 other clubs striving to hit the same goals. It means there are always going to be ups and downs, peaks and troughs.

Disappointments.

Right now we’re in a valley. We know the way out but the sat nav is showing a winding road rather than a straight run. The sun is starting to pierce the fog.

Experience tells you to stay the course. Lock in the route and follow it. There will be some hair pin bends and some corrugations but stay committed.

There have been some signs in the first eight rounds of this season. Indications that it has been with more than blind faith that we have viewed the club build.

That – dare I employ this overused euphemism – there are green shoots. That the worst is behind us. It is not going to be a seamless bounce back to finals contention but progress is being made.    

During the toughest days of the last two years there was a forensic focus on the club’s recruiting. Most pundits labelled it as a fail, but some of those players thrown into that bucket are starting to blossom.

Most draftees need two or three seasons to impact at the elite level. It generally takes more than one pre-season for the body to acclimatise and a similar period for the mind to adjust to the rigours of cutting it in this ultra-competitive league.

There are, of course, exceptions. Harley Reid is one of them. But he is an exceptional talent.

Three years ago the club brought in Campbell Chesser (14), Brady Hough (31), Rhett Bazzo (37), Jack Williams (57) and Greg Clark (62). Unfortunately for Clark things did not fall his way. An injury pandemic created opportunity but it came in a under-manned midfield.

For recruiters that draft was based more on gut instinct with a small sample of exposed form given the limited amount of football that was played when COVID-19 wreaked havoc on a global scale.

Chesser, Hough and Williams, particularly in the last month, have shown they should be prominent in the club build. Bazzo copped a groin issue at the wrong time this pre-season but has all the attributes.

Two years ago Reuben Ginbey (9), Elijah Hewett (14), Harry Barnett (23), Coby Burgiel (29) and Noah Long were drafted. They, too, have the credentials to succeed.

Then came Harley Reid, Archer Reid, Clay Hall, Harvey Johnston and Loch Rawlinson – as well as Matt Flynn and Tyler Brockman. They all have plenty to offer.

It has been trench warfare in the last couple of years, but the club is starting to land some blows; to win back some territory. Things are starting to turn and the youngsters are leading the charge.