West Coast’s post-Adam Simpson era began with effort and intensity, with a brave 13-point loss to a powerhouse Brisbane outfit on an emotional day at Optus Stadium.
The Eagles responded to a tumultuous fortnight with no shortage of fight as the 2018 premiership coach and team were celebrated in front of more than 41,000 of the blue-and-gold faithful.
They couldn’t match the class and skill of the highly-fancied Lions, who shone at the crucial moments to extend their winning streak to six with a 16.10 (106) to 14.9 (93) victory.
Much of Brisbane’s dominance came from the midfield and was unsurprisingly led by dual Brownlow medallist Lachie Neale (34 disposals, nine tackle, 13 clearances and two goals).
They beat the Eagles at the clearances 49-35 with Neale, Josh Dunkley (26 disposals) and Hugh McCluggage (32 disposals) showing why they’re the envy of the competition.
Neale’s fellow co-captain Harris Andrews was just as crucial, holding Eagles counterpart Oscar Allen for three quarters in an enthralling match-up that didn’t go the spearhead’s way until he kicked three goals in the final term.
At the other end of the ground Brady Hough renewed acquaintances with Charlie Cameron and might have kept him goalless if not for a 50m penalty in the first term and sitting on the bench when he kicked his second.
West Coast interim coach Jarrad Schofield flagged there wouldn’t be too much change, bar the notable axing of Jack Darling, but the moves he made bore some fruit.
Reuben Ginbey returned to half-back after stints on the wing and in the midfield and looked a lot more comfortable, while inclusion Zane Trew replicated his strong WAFL form with 20 disposals, eight tackles and three clearances in his first full game of the year.
Full of the emotion from the week, West Coast played with reckless intent, playing on at all costs and applying as much pressure as they could.
It stunned the Lions, who were caught on the hop by the pace at which the Eagles played early and struggled to stop them from cutting through the defence.
The crowd were driving them on and an early goal to Jake Waterman (two goals) only added to their enthusiasm, with the reigning wooden spooners going blow-for-blow with the premiership fancies.
Brisbane stuck to their structure though and by quarter time had weathered the Eagles storm to not only lead but cement their dominance at the clearances 15-4.
West Coast’s enormous task against the red-hot Lions got even harder when they lost co-captain Liam Duggan to a concussion within the first 30 seconds of the second term after a big tackle from Cameron.
The Eagles parked the kamikaze-style footy in the second term for a more contested brand, not allowing Brisbane to as they please at the clearances.
It was their defensive structures that at times broke down at inopportune times and the Brisbane midfield was on top and capitalising.
Brisbane looked like they’d finally broken the game open when Joe Daniher kicked his second goal before Zac Bailey made it a 14-point margin with a major.
But the Eagles kept finding ways to stay within touch, while some late Brisbane misses before half-time ensured they were in touch going into the second half.
The game turned into a scoring blitz with five goals in eight minutes to start the third term as the team that won the centre clearance found themselves kicking a goal.
Brisbane quickly went about establishing dominance after the main break, kicking two goals from two centre clearances to burst away by 22 points.
The Eagles hit back instantly through a centre clearance from Reid and Ryan to set up Waterman’s second, but Brisbane weren’t done yet as Cam Rayner sliced open the Eagles to re-establish the lead.
It was ecstasy to agony for starting sub Tyler Brockman who kicked his first goal for the Eagles, but them limped from the ground with an ankle injury soon after to leave the home side one short for the final quarter and a half.
When Cameron kicked the first of the final quarter a win seemed inevitable for the Lions but a miss from Bailey allowed the Eagles to go coast-to-coast and get Allen into the game with a goal.
Then the crowd got involved as 100-gamer Liam Ryan (two goals) brought them to their feet with a goal.
Tim Kelly lifted with 10 disposals in the final term to finish with 29, while Harley Reid (20 disposals and seven clearances) and Elliot Yeo (24 disposals and six clearances) evened the game at the contest as they won 11 clearances to four.
The energy was zapped from the fans and players by Kai Lohmann twice, kicking crucial goals to give Brisbane some vital breathing space as the Eagles came hard.
Fittingly, the win was sealed for Brisbane with a long-range goal from Neale who likely locked away another three Brownlow votes.
BRISBANE 4.4, 7.7, 12.8, 16.10 (106)
WEST COAST 3.2, 6.3, 9.4, 14.9 (93)
Goals – BRISBANE: C Cameron 2 J Daniher 2 E Hipwood 2 K Lohmann 2 L Neale 2 C Rayner 2 C Ah Chee W Ashcroft Z Bailey J Dunkley. WEST COAST: O Allen 3 L Ryan 2 J Waterman 2 T Brockman J Cripps L Edwards J Hutchinson T Kelly J Williams E Yeo.
Best – BRISBANE: L Neale H Andrews J Dunkley H McCluggage O McInerney C Rayner. WEST COAST: T Kelly B Hough E Yeo H Reid Z Trew R Ginbey.
Injuries – WEST COAST: L Duggan (concussion) T Brockman (ankle).
Umpires: J Dalgeish C DeBoy P Bailes N Jankovskis. Crowd: 41,489 at Optus Stadium.