Incoming midfield development coach Kyal Horsley believes his experiences on the fringes at Gold Coast will help him relate to West Coast’s emerging players as he embarks on the next chapter in his football journey.

A revered premiership captain at Subiaco, the 33-year-old electrician will turn his attention to moulding young footballers after hanging up the boots with five WAFL flags, four club champion awards and a Simpson Medal to his name.

Since returning to the Lions following a two-year stint at the Suns, who picked up Horsley as a mature-age rookie at the end of 2011, he has held ambitions to move into coaching and jumped at the chance to join Adam Simpson’s staff.

“It’s all happened pretty quick and just really excited to get stuck into it,” Horsley told Sportsday WA.

“Can’t wait to get into training and the organisation that is so impressive from the outside and see how it all operates, and just meet everyone and get used to the surroundings.”

Horsley played in five-straight WAFL deciders under Jarrad Schofield, learning plenty from the now Port Adelaide midfield mentor as well as his other coaches during an illustrious playing career.

“They’ve all had a massive influence on me as a player and I think you learn a lot from each, but I was probably more moving into wanting to get into coaching and working with younger guys when I came back from the Gold Coast,” Horsley said.

“Obviously I couldn’t have learnt from anyone better than Jarrad Schofield, so I pretty much wrote down all the things he did that really impressed me and the way he goes about it. Then you just try and mimic it yourself.

“His way of motivating players, driving them and being hard on players but then also be really caring and making players want to be involved and strive to be the best they can be was second to none and better than anyone I’ve been around.

“Then obviously his tactical brain and the way he operated on gameday was incredible and a massive part of the reason that we ended up playing in those five Grand Finals in a row under his watch and winning three of them.”

Horsley played 207 senior matches for Subiaco between 2007 and this year, either side of his 14-game career at the Suns.

The prolific midfielder managed 13 of those appearances in his debut season on the Gold Coast – when he averaged 17 disposals and four tackles - before being squeezed out of a talented engine room.

“Looking back now, and probably at the time I realised as well, the guys were just a step too good for me,” a candid Horsley said.

“Dion Prestia, Dave Swallow, Jaeger O’Meara, Gary Ablett of course, Michael Rischitelli, and I was trying to crack it in that line-up.

“If I had my time again I probably would have tried to be a lot more versatile and really nag the coaches a bit more about other roles I could fill.

“But at the time I just backed myself in to train as hard as I possibly could and get the most out of myself and opportunities will come.

“On reflection, I should have kept that same intensity in my training but probably just looked for a different avenue to getting a game in my second year.

“Just learnt a lot about being 24 years old, being on the fringe and in and out and (being) more mature you can understand the battles you have at that stage.

“I feel like that’s going to hold me in good stead to help guys going through that same thing at a younger age.”

Horsley will start at West Coast next month before the Eagles’ first-to-fourth-year players return to the training track on December 7.