“You can’t sleep on Hawthorn. Ever.”

That was Tom Barrass’ assessment of the Eagles’ upcoming battle with the Hawks.

West Coast could be forgiven for brimming with confidence after registering their sixth-straight win of season 2020 at the weekend, but that doesn’t mean they’ll be taking any opponent lightly in the run to the final.

And especially not Hawthorn, who have been among West Coast’s fiercest rivals in recent years.

Barrass said the Eagles would be on guard against the 15^th-placed Hawks when they locked horns at Optus Stadium on Sunday.

“West Coast and Hawthorn have had great battles for a number of years now,” Barrass said.

“We’ve both been relatively good teams for a number of years and I’d say they’ve probably had the better of us if not in wins in momentum. We certainly view them as a dangerous side.

“Alastair Clarkson is the best coach in the AFL and you can never write off Hawthorn. They are a quality side with quality players. They are finding their form, but I’m sure they’ll be bringing a pretty high performance this week.”

Barrass knows how good the Hawks can play, having bared witness to them operating at full flight in round 23 last year.

West Coast needed one last win to secure a coveted top four spot heading into the 2019 finals series, but Hawthorn spoiled their party with a dominant display at Optus Stadium.

The Hawks exploded out of the gates, kicking three unanswered goals, but the home side managed to take a small advantage into the second term following a brave fightback.

Unfortunately that was where West Coast’s fun ended, as Alistair Clarkson’s men booted 13 goals to four for the remainder of the match to record a convincing 38-point road win.

Barrass was sure senior coach Adam Simpson would remind the squad about that game ahead of the club’s round 12 encounter.

“I’d say he’d be referencing that exactly,” Barrass said.

“He’ll be reminding everyone about what happened last year and probably a couple of times before that when we played them.

“We’ll have to be at our best to take them down.”

The 24-year-old hoped to have four-time all-Australian Jeremy McGovern by his side in the contest, but he reiterated that he felt comfortable playing alongside any of the team’s tall defensive options.

He said West Coast’s backline strength lied in its system, not personnel.

“Gov is a great player and you want him in your team, but sometimes that can’t happen and we’re a system-based club; we do things by system and we have role players come in and fill that void when he’s out,” Barrass said.

“Rothy (Josh Rotham) has been great and Harry Edwards was unlucky to be concussed, but he’s ready to rumble.

“That’s how we sort of operate, system-based and hopefully that holds us in good stead.”