AFL athletes are competitive beasts, so don’t expect any West Coast Eagles players to be putting their hand up for a spell any time soon.
There has been talk externally that some of the club’s senior players should take a break, but none of the established stars are having those conversations inside the West Coast bubble.
The maxim that one should not give a sucker an even break rings true. With the club pushing to lock down a finals position as the competition moves into the last five rounds, no one is indicating they would give up their spot.
It remains as competitive as ever for places in the team and even though the club faces a compressed fixture when it relocates to Queensland for the second instalment of hub life, they are keen to maintain momentum.
The club’s travel party will leave for the Gold Coast tomorrow, this time staying at Sanctuary Cove, rather than Royal Pines Resort, such a good host for the first stint in the Sunshine State and the players are excited at the prospect of continuous footy.
They like the idea of playing a game, reviewing it, recovering and then playing again.
Their first assignment is Richmond on Thursday night, confronting the reigning premier at Metricon Stadium.
General Manager – Football, Craig Vozzo confirmed the attitude of the squad was that those in the team were in no hurry to share their role, in an interview with westcoasteagles.com.au ahead of the team’s trip east.
“We found out this morning that Sanctuary Cove is the destination,” Vozzo said.
“It looks like a really good place, great facilities, the travel party is up and about and ready to go.
“It looks like a good outcome facility-wise, the spirit in the group is really good. It is going to be a challenging period, but an exciting one. The opportunity ahead of us is great and the rewards if we can get it right are great as well.
“The guys are really upbeat. I just had a meeting with Adam (Simpson) and the senior leadership group and they’re in a really good space, looking forward to the next phase and the challenge that sits in Queensland for us.
“We are not going to have anyone putting their hand up for a rest, that’s for sure. Hopefully the decisions get harder for match committee as we re-introduce some of our players and some good players back into the squad like Mark Hutchings, Jack Redden, Elliot Yeo and Jack Petruccelle, so the pressure for spots will keep building.
“The fact that they’re going to be largely training to play, recover and play again is exciting; don’t leave too much on the track.”
Most of the squad will head to Queensland tomorrow, with some players on the injury list fine-tuning their rehabilitation in Perth before heading across at a later date.
