West Coast find winning edge over Sydney Swans
Sydney Swans threw down the gauntlet to West Coast in the first half of Saturday's clash on the Gold Coast, but class prevailed as the Eagles climbed out of a rut with a 34-point win.
The Swans led at quarter-time and trailed by just five points at the main break before Eagles ruckman Nic Naitanui and on-ballers Elliott Yeo and Dom Sheed asserted their dominance at the stoppages.
Jamie Cripps and Nic Naitanui celebrate a goal in the Eagles' win over Sydney.Credit:Getty Images
The trio combined for 25 clearances and 15 inside-50s as the Eagles kicked away in the third term with three goals to one and doubled the damage in the final term to score an 11.11 (77) to 6.7 (43) win over the young Swans.
Experienced pair Jake Lloyd (26 disposals) and Josh Kennedy (25) performed admirably for the Swans, but the Eagles ran deeper through the midfield with Sheed (24 touches), Yeo (21), Tim Kelly (19) and Andrew Gaff (18) sharing the load, covering for Luke Shuey who suffered a hamstring injury in the first half.
Sydney tried to play with dash and dare early in the game, playing on when possible and using the ball through the corridor to maximise their attacks.
The Swans had three of the first four goals on the board, but it was their risk taking through the middle that saw them turn the ball over and cough up a goal to Jake Waterman on the quarter-time siren.
The Eagles talls proved a handful for Sydney, with Oscar Allen (three goals), Waterman (two) and Jack Darling (two) sharing in the spoils. Swans tall Hayden McLean was their only multiple goal kicker with two majors.
The victory was West Coast's second for the season, their first in a month since entering the Queensland hub, while the Swans slumped to 2-3 with the loss.
Both sides will remain in the bottom half of the ladder and the fixture doesn't get easier for the Swans who meet the reigning premier Richmond next Sunday at the Gabba.
West Coast will also take on Adelaide in Brisbane next Saturday before they return to Perth for a derby with Fremantle.