1. With so many experienced players sidelined through injury, the Eagles needed their senior group to stand up and they could not have done more. Starting with Nic Naitanui, Andrew Gaff and Tiim Kelly in the midfield, forwards Jack Darling and Josh Kennedy, and defenders Tom Barrass, Shannon Hurn and Brad Sheppard, they were exemplary. And acting skipper Jeremy McGovern was arguably one of the most influential players on the ground before a hamstring strain forced him out of the game just before half time. McGovern had already taken four intercept marks, despite sitting out a period when he underwent a concussion assessment in the first term.

2. Not since round nine have the Eagles led the inside 50 count against an opponent, but their efficiency inside the attacking arc is supreme. Again they conceded entries 39-44, had fewer disposals (269-285) and lost the tackle count (44-58) but carved out a memorable 15-point win. That was in part because they took 11 marks inside 50 to the Saints’ five, with Liam Ryan taking three of them and key forwards Kennedy, Darling and Oscar Allen always threatening in the air. While conceding forward 50 entries in the last seven games, West Coast has still won five of them.

3. The running capacity of Andrew Gaff has been his strong suit since being drafted and he showed it again last night. The indefatigable midfielder played 100 per cent of game time to amass 33 possessions and three marks, with 13 of those contested. He was involved more around stoppages with several high profile midfielders watching from the sidelines and had three inside 50 metre entries.

4. The defensive unit at the Eagles has been outstanding all year and they maintained that benchmark against the Saints. Barrass led the way with 15 disposals (nine kicks, six handballs) and seven marks. He had 10 contested possessions and four intercept marks. Hurn was also outstanding after sitting out the Bulldogs game and Sheppard was terrific as well. For most of the night Sheppard had dangerous Saints small forward Dan Butler as his opponent and one of the form players of the competition had a quiet night, despite kicking an important goal in the last term.

5. We all love the aerial skills, the explosive pace and the sheer excitement of watching Liam Ryan play the game. But from a team perspective there is so much more to his game. He had 16 possessions, four marks and a goal against the Saints, eight of those touches were contested possessions. But he also had 12 pressure acts, three marks inside 50 and was responsible for four entries inside the forward arc. Throw in nine score involvements and he has become a significant force within the team.