After a whirlwind 24 hours since his appointment, the West Coast Eagles' proud and excited new coach Andrew McQualter was crystal clear about one thing: it’s time to get to work.

Having received the good news in a phone call from CEO Don Pyke as he drove home from a family holiday on Sunday, the next morning McQualter was on the plane to Perth with his wife Jane and daughters Emily, Alice and Georgia.

Following the initial meet and greets with players and staff, and tour of Mineral Resources Park, the Eagles’ seventh AFL senior coach was keen to get down to business.

“From day one we need to improve, there’s no question about that,” McQualter said at his introductory media conference alongside Pyke and Chair Paul Fitzpatrick.

“Around expectations, I don’t really live in that space, we’ve just got to get better every day.

“Find ways to improve the way we play, find ways to improve our habits, what we do every day and demand that of each other because that’s what it takes to be great in this game.”

An interim coach at Richmond in 2023 after triple-premiership mentor Damien Hardwick stepped down, McQualter’s long apprenticeship in the game has set him up for the opportunity to lead an AFL program.

The former Saint and Suns player worked at the Tigers in development and assistant coaching roles for a decade, before moving to Melbourne in 2024 after narrowly missing out on Richmond’s full-time senior job to Adem Yze.

When the West Coast position became available, the 38-year-old had no hesitation in throwing his hat in the ring for the challenge of leading the Eagles back into finals and flag contention.

“I’ve always admired this football club. They’ve been a really winning organisation since they came into the League,” McQualter said.

“That’s something that not every club has been able to do. They’ve been involved in (seven) Grand Finals in 37 years.

“Then the excitement of where the club currently is. For me, that’s a great challenge.

“It’s been a challenging few years with the football side of things, but the club is set to really grow and look to move it forward in the next few years.

“I’ve been really fortunate to spend time in some wonderful organisations and I’ve been part of success over that time.

“For me, it was just talking (during the selection process) about what I thought created a successful environment in those different places - ultimately, what I think leads to winning, because that’s what we’re here to do.

“We’re here to win games of football. That’s our job.”

While McQualter – or ‘Mini’ as he is affectionately known – has experienced sitting in the hot seat for 13 games at Richmond, there was much more to his appointment than his 7-6 win-loss record at the Tigers in 2023.

"We looked at it through the criteria we set for what we wanted from a senior coach and Andrew sits here today having ticked a lot of the boxes – more boxes than others,” Pyke said.

“The interim coach one gave him the opportunity to sit in the chair. There’s nothing like sitting in the chair and he’s had that experience.

“Fundamentally, he’s a very good person, great values and a very good footy coach, and that’s why we’ve employed him.”

McQualter has learnt from the likes of Hardwick and 2021 premiership coach Simon Goodwin, and intends to bring a combination of the best of Richmond and Melbourne’s playing styles to West Coast.

But he declared there would be no magic formula to the Eagles climbing back up the ladder after a lean period.

“Football is a pretty simple game. There’s no secrets to success. You’ve just got to work really hard,” McQualter said.

“You’ve got to look to do it together, build a coaching group and team that can instill belief in the playing group and football can change really quickly.

“We’ve seen it with the women’s program and Daisy (Pearce) doing a terrific job how quickly football can change, so that’s something I’m really excited about.”

The McQualters are yet to work through the family logistics of moving across the country, finding schools for their children and a new home, but they are excited for the journey ahead.

“I’m just incredibly fortunate that my wife is so supportive, Jane. This is a big move, there’s no question about it, it’s a big move for our family,” McQualter said.

“But for Jane to be able so support me the way she does to chase my dreams, what I want to do in life, I’ll be forever grateful for and we’re supported by some amazing family and friends.”