I am proud to have been involved with West Coast for the past 27 years. Over my time as a guernsey, I have played in 409 games for 219 wins, 189 losses and one draw.

While I sadly missed out on the club’s inaugural match back in 1987, I was lucky enough to play in our historic first grand final in 1991, as well as the club’s first two premierships in 1992 and 1994.

These highlights have been tempered by some leaner periods in 2002, 2003 and 2012 when I was put back in the cupboard, unable to play a single game.

My first partnership was with the indefatigable Robbie Wiley. We made our debut for the Eagles in round three of 1987 and we bonded straight away, possibly because Robbie had been wearing my no.2 brother in each of his five seasons at Richmond as well.

After a year of playing, Robbie thought he might be better off on the sidelines, so he went off to coach the Perth Demons for two years, before returning to West Coast where he stayed until the beginning of 2007, not before being made a life member of the club in 2003. He is now assisting Mick Malthouse at Carlton. I like to think that he owes at least some of his success to me.

Next, I was adopted by John Annear and we played 36 games together. Ours was a bit of a tough period in West Coast history with little to smile about, but you have to go through the dark days to make you appreciate the good times.

It was with Dean Kemp that I really came into my own. In our first year together, we played 23 games for 18 wins. Not a bad percentage! We played in the club’s first grand final that year and although we lost to Hawthorn, it was a good dress rehearsal for the following year when we defeated Geelong by 28 points, taking the premiership cup out of Victoria for the first time in the history of the game. We also won the best and fairest that year, as well as earning All-Australian selection.

Two years later, we were back on that last Saturday of September, finding ourselves face to face with the Cats once more. Only this time we beat them by 80 points and Kempy and I were awarded the Norm Smith Medal for best on ground. Kempy sadly retired from the game in 2001, but he was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame in 2007, which is no small achievement.

I was pretty exhausted after my time with Kempy, so I took a break for a couple of years before being picked up by young Andrew McDougall. Our first season was our best, with Andrew kicking 35 goals from 21 games, and we also played in an elimination final.

Andrew was later traded to the Western Bulldogs and I was handed over to a young rascal called Mark LeCras. Mark and I are still going strong today and I’ve really enjoyed being one of the most recognisable numbers out on the field thanks to his goal-kicking prowess. Remember when we broke the record at Etihad Stadium by booting 12 goals against Essendon? I’ve got a feeling that another huge haul is just around the corner for us.

Jumper no.2 timeline
1987 Rob Wiley 18 games (won 10, lost 8)
1988 John Annear 19 games (won 10, lost 9)
1989 John Annear 13 games (won 2, lost 12)
1990 John Annear 4 games (won 2, lost 2)
1991 Dean Kemp 23 games (won 18, lost 5)
1992 Dean Kemp 25 games (won 18, drew 1, lost 6)
1993 Dean Kemp 17 games (won 11, lost 6)
1994 Dean Kemp 22 games (won 16, lost 6)
1995 Dean Kemp 23 games (won 13, lost 10)
1996 Dean Kemp 21 games (won 14, lost 7)
1997 Dean Kemp 22 games (won 13, lost 9)
1998 Dean Kemp 17 games (won 8, lost 9)
1999 Dean Kemp 22 games (won 11, lost 11)
2000 Dean Kemp 20 games (won 6, lost 14)
2001 Dean Kemp 8 games (won 2, lost 6)
2004 Andrew McDougall 21 games (won 13, lost 8)
2005 Andrew McDougall 4 games (won 3, lost 1)
2006 Andrew McDougall 1 game (lost 1)
2007 Mark LeCras 19 games (won 10, lost 9)
2008 Mark LeCras 11 games (won 3, lost 8)
2009 Mark LeCras 21 games (won 8, lost 13)
2010 Mark LeCras 21 games (won 4, lost 17)
2011 Mark LeCras 22 games (won 15, lost 5)
2012 Mark LeCras 0 games
2013 Mark LeCras 15 games (won 7, lost 8)
2014 Mark LeCras 15 games (won 10, lost 5)
2015 Mark LeCras 24 games (won 17, drew 1, lost 6)
2016 Mark LeCras 23 games (won 16, lost 7)

NB The history of jumper no.2 includes only players who have represented the club at senior level during qualifying rounds and finals

Does West Coast history float your boat? Visit our history section for a detailed timeline, club records, every game ever played and more.