The WAFL Eagles produced an impressive 21-point victory over Claremont at Mineral Resources Park on Saturday.

Senior coach Kyal Horsley said he was proud of the team’s efforts and maturity to stay in the game when Claremont fought back in the second half.

“After a long two weeks after the West Perth game, the players really took ownership of their efforts in the contest and responded really well and I’m proud of their performance to get the win,” Horsley said.

“While it wasn’t a four-quarter performance, when we played our way and played at our best, it was enough to give us a big enough margin.

“Claremont, to their credit, readjusted and came back in the third quarter, but fortunately our guys were mature enough to steady again and ended up kicking away, so really proud of their performance.”

Top Performers

Zane Trew

It was a big performance after a month out with concussion, it just worked that way with the byes, so to come back and perform the way he did, just be really clean and prolific with the ball, but also his intent and team defence just shows how hard he’s been training and the standard he has to allow him to perform at that level.

Harry Edwards

Big game from Harry, I thought in the second and third quarter when Claremont gained momentum is when he was at his best and he was probably the difference between us winning and losing that game. The way he set up behind the ball and he was able to intercept and create contests when it looked like Claremont were going to score, he had a massive influence on the game and is in some really good form.

Harley Sparks

New role for Harley, we put him down back and he gave us a lot of rebound offensively, but his defensive work was a real highlight. His ability to halve contests, manage two opponents and create a contest for us was big I’m proud of his effort.

Shannon Lucassen

He’s had a really strong year and performed really well. We got a bit more supply and he ended up kicking three goals, but it was his pressure and tenacity in the forward line which was the big highlight, and regardless of the goals, he had a big influence on the game.

AFL Listed Players

Matt Flynn

Big return from ‘Flynny’, led the ruck for us against a quality ruck in Ollie Eastland. It was a really intriguing battle, and ‘Flynny’s’ influence in the contest, his maturity and helping us steady when Claremont challenged was really pleasing, and good to see him get through and return.

Andrew Gaff

Really strong game for ‘Gaffy’, with Luke Edwards going down, his role changed on the day and his output was really big in terms of clearances, tackles, pressure, it was top level. His ability to accumulate and give us a lot of drive in Eagles ball was a big asset.

Luke Edwards

Unfortunately, Luke got a head knock really early, lasted 15 seconds which is a real shame, but hopefully he recovers well and gets back out there soon.

Tyler Brockman

Really pleased for ‘Brocky’. He’s had a few weeks away but had a big impact on the game. His second half was really crucial for us, and you could just see the spark he brings in offense and defence, offence by creating and defence by his ability to get us turnover constantly which is a real asset.

Archer Reid

His stat line doesn’t really display the full impact he had on the game. His ability to win and create another contest in the front half, and his defensive pressure, really outweighed his stat line. He ended up with one goal and two points, but he had a lot more influence than that in the game and is building really well and you can see his forward craft improving week on week.

Jordyn Baker

Strong defensive game from ‘Bakes’ and he had a lot of crucial one-on-ones and halved or won them all. He gave us some good quality bounce in Eagles ball, but just really impressed with his defensive intent and his ability to compete in the contest, whether he’s on a bigger body or a smaller body.

Loch Rawlinson

Another really solid performance from Loch. His ability to link the ground up for us defensively and offensively is crucial in that high half-forward role, he covers a lot of territory every week and he got rewarded this week with two goals and 14 disposals. He’s building really nicely, and you can see his game really growing his ability to influence when he gets his chances is really starting to develop.

Coby Burgiel

A good response from ‘Burger’, playing the wing role is a tough role, it’s his third week into it now and you can see his running patterns building and his contest work was something he worked really hard on over the past two-week block. He had a couple of big moments for us where he had to secure the ball and get us a restart, or win the contest for us, and he executed every time. He kicked a really nice goal and set up a few others.

Coen Livingstone

With Flynn back, Coen ended up spending a lot more time up forward. His ability to win and create another contest was crucial. He didn’t take all his chances, he left a few out there, but his predictability to be able to create the contest and then when the ball hit the ground, lay three forward fifty tackles and keep it locked in for us was crucial.

Jai Culley

Bit of a slow start to the game for Jai, but he really built into it, and he was crucial for us in the last quarter. He had a really big last quarter around the ball, with clearance numbers and with the physicality in the contest and was a big part of the reason why we won.

Harvey Johnston

Another player whose stat line doesn’t reflect the influence he had on the game. I thought his communication, his ability to help his teammates and the way he covered and stretched the ground for us defensively was a key part in the result. And while he didn’t accumulate like he would have wanted to, his effort and energy was the level it needs to be and he’s progressing well.