Up the Coasters West Coast Eagles - Best Ever Games (The Game)

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Mar 11, 2015
1,499
3,145
AFL Club
West Coast
I was at Subi oval Rd 21 1995, WC lost to Carlton but it was an absolute cracking game one of best I've seen, 2 heavy weights exchanging blows. If my memory serves me well Mainwairing had a chance to win the game for us with the last shot on goal but kicked a point instead of a goal, Carlton went on to win the flag.
Would love to watch it again, was like a final.
 

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Jun 5, 2004
9,132
6,650
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West Coast
I was at Subi oval Rd 21 1995, WC lost to Carlton but it was an absolute cracking game one of best I've seen, 2 heavy weights exchanging blows. If my memory serves me well Mainwairing had a chance to win the game for us with the last shot on goal but kicked a point instead of a goal, Carlton went on to win the flag.
Would love to watch it again, was like a final.

Check out Youtube, I reckon every Eagles loss to Carlton through the 90s is on there. :p

I've not seen the game since it happened, can't remember if Mainy had a shot in that game. In 1993, I remember he had a shot from the pocket late in the game after Carlton got called for deliberate (which was a rarity back then) and hit the post with a left foot snap. He did a news report later in the week where he was on a cherry picker and about to chainsaw off the top of the goalpost.
 
Jun 5, 2004
9,132
6,650
AFL Club
West Coast
Qualifying Final 2015 – West Coast Eagles (14.12.96) def. Hawthorn (9.10.64)

View attachment 778746

The Context:
2013 marked the end of an era for West Coast, with Eagles legend John Worsfold stepping aside from the head coach position, making way for Adam Simpson to take the helm of this great club. After a solid, albeit unremarkable, first season in charge, Simpson had one job – return the Eagles to the finals, lest we match our longest ever streak without September action (three seasons, imagine not supporting this juggernaut).

The 2015 season marked the beginning of Shannon Hurn’s tenure as captain, replacing another outgoing legend in Darren Glass. For all intents and purposes, this was as close to an organisational cleanout as the Eagles had seen in some time, with Simpson and Hurn hoping to make their mark on the blank slate ahead of them.

Despite starting the season with a 1-2 record, the Eagles found an identity in a zone defence, quick transition game plan that saw them rocket up the ladder to finish in second place. All-Australians Matthew Priddis, Andrew Gaff and Josh Kennedy led the way, firing the high scoring Eagles into September, while the emergence of Jeremy McGovern, the continued dominance of Nic Naitanui and midfield exposure of Elliot Yeo saw the club boast match winners on every line.

Put simply, the 2015 West Coast Eagles were good. How good? Well, to find that out, they’d need to test themselves against the very best.

Hawthorn entered 2015 as back-to-back Premiers, finishing just two premiership points below the Eagles on the ladder. While West Coast would host the Qualifying Final, history was on the Hawks’ side. The Eagles had failed to beat Hawthorn since 2012, losing five consecutive games to the Hawks including one at Subiaco Oval just weeks prior. Alistair Clarkson seemed to have the wood over his protégé, along with a wealth of finals experience against a man leading his team into September for the first time.

The season was fun, but this game was the first major test of Adam Simpson’s credentials. Coaching against his mentor, Simpson hoped he could lead the Eagles to their first home prelim in a decade. All he had to contend with was the back-to-back Premiers, an imminent storm….oh, and the game day withdrawal of his reigning Brownlow medallist.
The Mood:
















I give the Eagles board a feisty 7/10.
The Game:





First quarter: Nic Naitanui approached the opening bounce, more focused than perhaps any player on the field that evening. When the Eagles and Hawks last met, the star ruckman was a last-minute withdrawal, taking time away from football due to the passing of his mother. The ball was bounced, and Naitanui leapt to win the tap, his first of 40 hitouts, before following it up with the Eagles’ first possession of the game.

The two sides battled for supremacy, with the similar, skills driven gameplans clashing not only against one another, but with the intensity and scrappiness of finals football. The Eagles struck the first major blow, as Josh Hill was gifted a routine snap after a kick-in error. Jack Gunston snuck out the back of the Eagles zone to respond, before Elliot Yeo made his first major impact of a game that would prove to be a coming out for the emergent midfielder. The Hawks turned the screw ahead of quarter time, and the first term had been effectively a stalemate. With the rain looking imminent, and the veteran Hawks tipped to handled the conditions better, the Eagles would need to strike quickly. QT: WCE 2.2.14 trail HAW 2.3.15


Second quarter:
Stop reading right now and watch this quarter. I’ll wait.







Did you watch it? Good.

A cheap 50 metre penalty saw Brad Sheppard kick his only finals goal to date, a just reward for a player tasked with battling beyond his weight class all season as he continued to blossom at the heart of Adam Simpson’s defensive system. Josh Kennedy showed his class, with the Coleman Medallist taking the quarter and game by the scruff of its neck, kicking them from everywhere in a classic display of forward craft. Luke Shuey’s 11 disposals fired the Eagles forward time and time again, while the defence dug in their heels and held the Hawks to just one behind in the term. Five goals to none. Breathtaking stuff. HT: WCE 7.6.48 lead HAW 2.4.16


Third quarter:
The Hawks piled on the pressure to strike back at West Coast, but inaccuracy and some desperate defence held the visitors to just one goal in nearly 10 minutes of play. An uneasy four goal lead was extended by Josh Hill, before David Hale returned serve with a major of his own. It would be the last shot fired by Hawthorn.

The Eagles responded immediately with a forward entry that was unfortunately rushed through for a behind, but represented a clear indicator of the wave of pressure that was to come. LeCras, Cripps and Darling all took turns adding to the goal column, before Cripps marked in the goal square on the siren, slamming through another goal and sending Subiaco Oval into party mode. The Eagles had registered eight of the final 10 scores of the quarter, booting five goals to two and extending the lead to 50 points at the final change. The Eagles just had to hold on. 3QT: WCE 12.11.83 lead HAW 4.9.33


Fourth quarter:
Jarryd Roughhead goaled within moments to open the term, cutting the margin to 44 points. Who cares? Shaun Burgoyne got in on the act, reducing the lead to 38. Josh Kennedy let the Hawks off the hook and, while time was draining off the clock, Hawthorn weren’t giving up the chase. Goals to Burgoyne and Isaac Smith made it four unanswered for the Hawks, and the margin was just 27 with nine minutes to play. The Eagles weren’t out of the woods yet.

A tense four minutes of football ensued, with the clock becoming an ever present factor. The Eagles repeatedly surged forward, but failed to find a clear shot at goal. Enter, Mark Clutchings. Capitalising on Naitanui’s ruck dominance, Hutchings found himself in possession of the ball directly in front, before Luke Hodge slammed into his back like he was a roadside pole during a drunken bender. Goal. Ball game.

The sealer had been kicked, now all that was left was jubilation. Nic Naitanui outmarked two opponents down the line (doesn’t do it enough tbh), sent the ball inside 50 and set up Josh Hill’s wonder strike for his third, and best, goal of the evening. That was that, the Eagles had done it. On cue, the rain began to fall over Subiaco Oval, and nobody cared for a damn second. FT: WCE 14.12.96 def HAW 9.10.64

The Impact:

This game tends to get buried given what was to come in the 2015 Finals series, but that’s a revisionist approach. At the time, this was the single biggest test that could have been thrown the Eagles’ way, and they passed with flying colours. The roar of the crowd as the siren sounded (kicked up a notch once the heavens opened) was, in my opinion, the best moment the Eagles had delivered in a decade. Relief. Hope. Joy. Pride. Adam Simpson’s Eagles were for real, and the 2015 Qualifying Final proved it.


Was there that night, remember going in not expecting to win and came out of it euphoric. Was an amazing performance and a sign of what we were capable of.
 
Dec 8, 2006
11,460
29,719
WA
AFL Club
West Coast
Qualifying Final 2015 – West Coast Eagles (14.12.96) def. Hawthorn (9.10.64)

View attachment 778746

The Context:
2013 marked the end of an era for West Coast, with Eagles legend John Worsfold stepping aside from the head coach position, making way for Adam Simpson to take the helm of this great club. After a solid, albeit unremarkable, first season in charge, Simpson had one job – return the Eagles to the finals, lest we match our longest ever streak without September action (three seasons, imagine not supporting this juggernaut).

The 2015 season marked the beginning of Shannon Hurn’s tenure as captain, replacing another outgoing legend in Darren Glass. For all intents and purposes, this was as close to an organisational cleanout as the Eagles had seen in some time, with Simpson and Hurn hoping to make their mark on the blank slate ahead of them.

Despite starting the season with a 1-2 record, the Eagles found an identity in a zone defence, quick transition game plan that saw them rocket up the ladder to finish in second place. All-Australians Matthew Priddis, Andrew Gaff and Josh Kennedy led the way, firing the high scoring Eagles into September, while the emergence of Jeremy McGovern, the continued dominance of Nic Naitanui and midfield exposure of Elliot Yeo saw the club boast match winners on every line.

Put simply, the 2015 West Coast Eagles were good. How good? Well, to find that out, they’d need to test themselves against the very best.

Hawthorn entered 2015 as back-to-back Premiers, finishing just two premiership points below the Eagles on the ladder. While West Coast would host the Qualifying Final, history was on the Hawks’ side. The Eagles had failed to beat Hawthorn since 2012, losing five consecutive games to the Hawks including one at Subiaco Oval just weeks prior. Alistair Clarkson seemed to have the wood over his protégé, along with a wealth of finals experience against a man leading his team into September for the first time.

The season was fun, but this game was the first major test of Adam Simpson’s credentials. Coaching against his mentor, Simpson hoped he could lead the Eagles to their first home prelim in a decade. All he had to contend with was the back-to-back Premiers, an imminent storm….oh, and the game day withdrawal of his reigning Brownlow medallist.
The Mood:
















I give the Eagles board a feisty 7/10.
The Game:





First quarter: Nic Naitanui approached the opening bounce, more focused than perhaps any player on the field that evening. When the Eagles and Hawks last met, the star ruckman was a last-minute withdrawal, taking time away from football due to the passing of his mother. The ball was bounced, and Naitanui leapt to win the tap, his first of 40 hitouts, before following it up with the Eagles’ first possession of the game.

The two sides battled for supremacy, with the similar, skills driven gameplans clashing not only against one another, but with the intensity and scrappiness of finals football. The Eagles struck the first major blow, as Josh Hill was gifted a routine snap after a kick-in error. Jack Gunston snuck out the back of the Eagles zone to respond, before Elliot Yeo made his first major impact of a game that would prove to be a coming out for the emergent midfielder. The Hawks turned the screw ahead of quarter time, and the first term had been effectively a stalemate. With the rain looking imminent, and the veteran Hawks tipped to handled the conditions better, the Eagles would need to strike quickly. QT: WCE 2.2.14 trail HAW 2.3.15


Second quarter:
Stop reading right now and watch this quarter. I’ll wait.







Did you watch it? Good.

A cheap 50 metre penalty saw Brad Sheppard kick his only finals goal to date, a just reward for a player tasked with battling beyond his weight class all season as he continued to blossom at the heart of Adam Simpson’s defensive system. Josh Kennedy showed his class, with the Coleman Medallist taking the quarter and game by the scruff of its neck, kicking them from everywhere in a classic display of forward craft. Luke Shuey’s 11 disposals fired the Eagles forward time and time again, while the defence dug in their heels and held the Hawks to just one behind in the term. Five goals to none. Breathtaking stuff. HT: WCE 7.6.48 lead HAW 2.4.16


Third quarter:
The Hawks piled on the pressure to strike back at West Coast, but inaccuracy and some desperate defence held the visitors to just one goal in nearly 10 minutes of play. An uneasy four goal lead was extended by Josh Hill, before David Hale returned serve with a major of his own. It would be the last shot fired by Hawthorn.

The Eagles responded immediately with a forward entry that was unfortunately rushed through for a behind, but represented a clear indicator of the wave of pressure that was to come. LeCras, Cripps and Darling all took turns adding to the goal column, before Cripps marked in the goal square on the siren, slamming through another goal and sending Subiaco Oval into party mode. The Eagles had registered eight of the final 10 scores of the quarter, booting five goals to two and extending the lead to 50 points at the final change. The Eagles just had to hold on. 3QT: WCE 12.11.83 lead HAW 4.9.33


Fourth quarter:
Jarryd Roughhead goaled within moments to open the term, cutting the margin to 44 points. Who cares? Shaun Burgoyne got in on the act, reducing the lead to 38. Josh Kennedy let the Hawks off the hook and, while time was draining off the clock, Hawthorn weren’t giving up the chase. Goals to Burgoyne and Isaac Smith made it four unanswered for the Hawks, and the margin was just 27 with nine minutes to play. The Eagles weren’t out of the woods yet.

A tense four minutes of football ensued, with the clock becoming an ever present factor. The Eagles repeatedly surged forward, but failed to find a clear shot at goal. Enter, Mark Clutchings. Capitalising on Naitanui’s ruck dominance, Hutchings found himself in possession of the ball directly in front, before Luke Hodge slammed into his back like he was a roadside pole during a drunken bender. Goal. Ball game.

The sealer had been kicked, now all that was left was jubilation. Nic Naitanui outmarked two opponents down the line (doesn’t do it enough tbh), sent the ball inside 50 and set up Josh Hill’s wonder strike for his third, and best, goal of the evening. That was that, the Eagles had done it. On cue, the rain began to fall over Subiaco Oval, and nobody cared for a damn second. FT: WCE 14.12.96 def HAW 9.10.64

The Impact:

This game tends to get buried given what was to come in the 2015 Finals series, but that’s a revisionist approach. At the time, this was the single biggest test that could have been thrown the Eagles’ way, and they passed with flying colours. The roar of the crowd as the siren sounded (kicked up a notch once the heavens opened) was, in my opinion, the best moment the Eagles had delivered in a decade. Relief. Hope. Joy. Pride. Adam Simpson’s Eagles were for real, and the 2015 Qualifying Final proved it.


I heard Pridda might be out at lunch time from memory.

I didn't go back to work. Couldn't concentrate. Just bummed around the city until I wandered over to Subi. Have never been that nervous before a game before or since.

Cracking game. So gald I was there.
 
Mar 21, 2017
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Arsenal, Scorchers, Scuderia Ferrari
We're moving onto Keys. Sorry TY24 but I needed your confirmation, mate. We can't let this thing get bogged down, communication is key.

Keys - you're 48 hours begins buddy!
Yeah sorry mate, I’ve had a bit of a spell from BF this week while I’ve been at work, didn’t see this.
 
Qualifying Final 2015 – West Coast Eagles (14.12.96) def. Hawthorn (9.10.64)

View attachment 778746

The Context:
2013 marked the end of an era for West Coast, with Eagles legend John Worsfold stepping aside from the head coach position, making way for Adam Simpson to take the helm of this great club. After a solid, albeit unremarkable, first season in charge, Simpson had one job – return the Eagles to the finals, lest we match our longest ever streak without September action (three seasons, imagine not supporting this juggernaut).

The 2015 season marked the beginning of Shannon Hurn’s tenure as captain, replacing another outgoing legend in Darren Glass. For all intents and purposes, this was as close to an organisational cleanout as the Eagles had seen in some time, with Simpson and Hurn hoping to make their mark on the blank slate ahead of them.

Despite starting the season with a 1-2 record, the Eagles found an identity in a zone defence, quick transition game plan that saw them rocket up the ladder to finish in second place. All-Australians Matthew Priddis, Andrew Gaff and Josh Kennedy led the way, firing the high scoring Eagles into September, while the emergence of Jeremy McGovern, the continued dominance of Nic Naitanui and midfield exposure of Elliot Yeo saw the club boast match winners on every line.

Put simply, the 2015 West Coast Eagles were good. How good? Well, to find that out, they’d need to test themselves against the very best.

Hawthorn entered 2015 as back-to-back Premiers, finishing just two premiership points below the Eagles on the ladder. While West Coast would host the Qualifying Final, history was on the Hawks’ side. The Eagles had failed to beat Hawthorn since 2012, losing five consecutive games to the Hawks including one at Subiaco Oval just weeks prior. Alistair Clarkson seemed to have the wood over his protégé, along with a wealth of finals experience against a man leading his team into September for the first time.

The season was fun, but this game was the first major test of Adam Simpson’s credentials. Coaching against his mentor, Simpson hoped he could lead the Eagles to their first home prelim in a decade. All he had to contend with was the back-to-back Premiers, an imminent storm….oh, and the game day withdrawal of his reigning Brownlow medallist.
The Mood:
















I give the Eagles board a feisty 7/10.
The Game:





First quarter: Nic Naitanui approached the opening bounce, more focused than perhaps any player on the field that evening. When the Eagles and Hawks last met, the star ruckman was a last-minute withdrawal, taking time away from football due to the passing of his mother. The ball was bounced, and Naitanui leapt to win the tap, his first of 40 hitouts, before following it up with the Eagles’ first possession of the game.

The two sides battled for supremacy, with the similar, skills driven gameplans clashing not only against one another, but with the intensity and scrappiness of finals football. The Eagles struck the first major blow, as Josh Hill was gifted a routine snap after a kick-in error. Jack Gunston snuck out the back of the Eagles zone to respond, before Elliot Yeo made his first major impact of a game that would prove to be a coming out for the emergent midfielder. The Hawks turned the screw ahead of quarter time, and the first term had been effectively a stalemate. With the rain looking imminent, and the veteran Hawks tipped to handled the conditions better, the Eagles would need to strike quickly. QT: WCE 2.2.14 trail HAW 2.3.15


Second quarter:
Stop reading right now and watch this quarter. I’ll wait.







Did you watch it? Good.

A cheap 50 metre penalty saw Brad Sheppard kick his only finals goal to date, a just reward for a player tasked with battling beyond his weight class all season as he continued to blossom at the heart of Adam Simpson’s defensive system. Josh Kennedy showed his class, with the Coleman Medallist taking the quarter and game by the scruff of its neck, kicking them from everywhere in a classic display of forward craft. Luke Shuey’s 11 disposals fired the Eagles forward time and time again, while the defence dug in their heels and held the Hawks to just one behind in the term. Five goals to none. Breathtaking stuff. HT: WCE 7.6.48 lead HAW 2.4.16


Third quarter:
The Hawks piled on the pressure to strike back at West Coast, but inaccuracy and some desperate defence held the visitors to just one goal in nearly 10 minutes of play. An uneasy four goal lead was extended by Josh Hill, before David Hale returned serve with a major of his own. It would be the last shot fired by Hawthorn.

The Eagles responded immediately with a forward entry that was unfortunately rushed through for a behind, but represented a clear indicator of the wave of pressure that was to come. LeCras, Cripps and Darling all took turns adding to the goal column, before Cripps marked in the goal square on the siren, slamming through another goal and sending Subiaco Oval into party mode. The Eagles had registered eight of the final 10 scores of the quarter, booting five goals to two and extending the lead to 50 points at the final change. Now they just had to hold on. 3QT: WCE 12.11.83 lead HAW 4.9.33


Fourth quarter:
Jarryd Roughhead goaled within moments to open the term, cutting the margin to 44 points. Who cares? Shaun Burgoyne got in on the act, reducing the lead to 38. Josh Kennedy let the Hawks off the hook and, while time was draining off the clock, Hawthorn weren’t giving up the chase. Goals to Burgoyne and Isaac Smith made it four unanswered for the Hawks, and the margin was just 27 with nine minutes to play. The Eagles weren’t out of the woods yet.

A tense four minutes of football ensued, with the clock becoming an ever present factor. The Eagles repeatedly surged forward, but failed to find a clear shot at goal. Enter, Mark Clutchings. Capitalising on Naitanui’s ruck dominance, Hutchings found himself in possession of the ball directly in front, before Luke Hodge slammed into his back like he was a roadside pole during a drunken bender. Goal. Ball game.

The sealer had been kicked, now all that was left was jubilation. Nic Naitanui outmarked two opponents down the line (doesn’t do it enough tbh), sent the ball inside 50 and set up Josh Hill’s wonder strike for his third, and best, goal of the evening. That was that, the Eagles had done it. On cue, the rain began to fall over Subiaco Oval, and nobody cared for a damn second. FT: WCE 14.12.96 def HAW 9.10.64

The Impact:

This game tends to get buried given what was to come in the 2015 Finals series, but that’s a revisionist approach. At the time, this was the single biggest test that could have been thrown the Eagles’ way, and they passed with flying colours. The roar of the crowd as the siren sounded (kicked up a notch once the heavens opened) was, in my opinion, the best moment the Eagles had delivered in a decade. Relief. Hope. Joy. Pride. Adam Simpson’s Eagles were for real, and the 2015 Qualifying Final proved it.

There were some great moments in that game. Whenever Priddis was on screen the crowd gave a massive cheer.

And Sheppard got a standing ovation at one point for flying out of defence to stop I think Roughead from getting a clear shot away and caused a ball up. Acknowledgement from the crowd for a guy having an amazing season. At that point in time he was the best defender in the AFL, period. Tall or small. AA committees don't like him.
 
How rare is it for a player mid game to get a standing O as well. Not a milestone, not coming back from a long term injury, not breaking teenagers jaws. None of the usual things we like giving standing ovations for, just a guy at the absolute top of his game.

I reckon that was one of the biggest cheers of the night, for anyone who can remember it. Can't find it on YouTube though.
 

Rowan18

Norm Smith Medallist
Feb 20, 2018
7,247
14,579
AFL Club
West Coast
Qualifying Final 2015 – West Coast Eagles (14.12.96) def. Hawthorn (9.10.64)

View attachment 778746

The Context:
2013 marked the end of an era for West Coast, with Eagles legend John Worsfold stepping aside from the head coach position, making way for Adam Simpson to take the helm of this great club. After a solid, albeit unremarkable, first season in charge, Simpson had one job – return the Eagles to the finals, lest we match our longest ever streak without September action (three seasons, imagine not supporting this juggernaut).

The 2015 season marked the beginning of Shannon Hurn’s tenure as captain, replacing another outgoing legend in Darren Glass. For all intents and purposes, this was as close to an organisational cleanout as the Eagles had seen in some time, with Simpson and Hurn hoping to make their mark on the blank slate ahead of them.

Despite starting the season with a 1-2 record, the Eagles found an identity in a zone defence, quick transition game plan that saw them rocket up the ladder to finish in second place. All-Australians Matthew Priddis, Andrew Gaff and Josh Kennedy led the way, firing the high scoring Eagles into September, while the emergence of Jeremy McGovern, the continued dominance of Nic Naitanui and midfield exposure of Elliot Yeo saw the club boast match winners on every line.

Put simply, the 2015 West Coast Eagles were good. How good? Well, to find that out, they’d need to test themselves against the very best.

Hawthorn entered 2015 as back-to-back Premiers, finishing just two premiership points below the Eagles on the ladder. While West Coast would host the Qualifying Final, history was on the Hawks’ side. The Eagles had failed to beat Hawthorn since 2012, losing five consecutive games to the Hawks including one at Subiaco Oval just weeks prior. Alistair Clarkson seemed to have the wood over his protégé, along with a wealth of finals experience against a man leading his team into September for the first time.

The season was fun, but this game was the first major test of Adam Simpson’s credentials. Coaching against his mentor, Simpson hoped he could lead the Eagles to their first home prelim in a decade. All he had to contend with was the back-to-back Premiers, an imminent storm….oh, and the game day withdrawal of his reigning Brownlow medallist.
The Mood:
















I give the Eagles board a feisty 7/10.
The Game:





First quarter: Nic Naitanui approached the opening bounce, more focused than perhaps any player on the field that evening. When the Eagles and Hawks last met, the star ruckman was a last-minute withdrawal, taking time away from football due to the passing of his mother. The ball was bounced, and Naitanui leapt to win the tap, his first of 40 hitouts, before following it up with the Eagles’ first possession of the game.

The two sides battled for supremacy, with the similar, skills driven gameplans clashing not only against one another, but with the intensity and scrappiness of finals football. The Eagles struck the first major blow, as Josh Hill was gifted a routine snap after a kick-in error. Jack Gunston snuck out the back of the Eagles zone to respond, before Elliot Yeo made his first major impact of a game that would prove to be a coming out for the emergent midfielder. The Hawks turned the screw ahead of quarter time, and the first term had been effectively a stalemate. With the rain looking imminent, and the veteran Hawks tipped to handled the conditions better, the Eagles would need to strike quickly. QT: WCE 2.2.14 trail HAW 2.3.15


Second quarter:
Stop reading right now and watch this quarter. I’ll wait.







Did you watch it? Good.

A cheap 50 metre penalty saw Brad Sheppard kick his only finals goal to date, a just reward for a player tasked with battling beyond his weight class all season as he continued to blossom at the heart of Adam Simpson’s defensive system. Josh Kennedy showed his class, with the Coleman Medallist taking the quarter and game by the scruff of its neck, kicking them from everywhere in a classic display of forward craft. Luke Shuey’s 11 disposals fired the Eagles forward time and time again, while the defence dug in their heels and held the Hawks to just one behind in the term. Five goals to none. Breathtaking stuff. HT: WCE 7.6.48 lead HAW 2.4.16


Third quarter:
The Hawks piled on the pressure to strike back at West Coast, but inaccuracy and some desperate defence held the visitors to just one goal in nearly 10 minutes of play. An uneasy four goal lead was extended by Josh Hill, before David Hale returned serve with a major of his own. It would be the last shot fired by Hawthorn.

The Eagles responded immediately with a forward entry that was unfortunately rushed through for a behind, but represented a clear indicator of the wave of pressure that was to come. LeCras, Cripps and Darling all took turns adding to the goal column, before Cripps marked in the goal square on the siren, slamming through another goal and sending Subiaco Oval into party mode. The Eagles had registered eight of the final 10 scores of the quarter, booting five goals to two and extending the lead to 50 points at the final change. Now they just had to hold on. 3QT: WCE 12.11.83 lead HAW 4.9.33


Fourth quarter:
Jarryd Roughhead goaled within moments to open the term, cutting the margin to 44 points. Who cares? Shaun Burgoyne got in on the act, reducing the lead to 38. Josh Kennedy let the Hawks off the hook and, while time was draining off the clock, Hawthorn weren’t giving up the chase. Goals to Burgoyne and Isaac Smith made it four unanswered for the Hawks, and the margin was just 27 with nine minutes to play. The Eagles weren’t out of the woods yet.

A tense four minutes of football ensued, with the clock becoming an ever present factor. The Eagles repeatedly surged forward, but failed to find a clear shot at goal. Enter, Mark Clutchings. Capitalising on Naitanui’s ruck dominance, Hutchings found himself in possession of the ball directly in front, before Luke Hodge slammed into his back like he was a roadside pole during a drunken bender. Goal. Ball game.

The sealer had been kicked, now all that was left was jubilation. Nic Naitanui outmarked two opponents down the line (doesn’t do it enough tbh), sent the ball inside 50 and set up Josh Hill’s wonder strike for his third, and best, goal of the evening. That was that, the Eagles had done it. On cue, the rain began to fall over Subiaco Oval, and nobody cared for a damn second. FT: WCE 14.12.96 def HAW 9.10.64

The Impact:

This game tends to get buried given what was to come in the 2015 Finals series, but that’s a revisionist approach. At the time, this was the single biggest test that could have been thrown the Eagles’ way, and they passed with flying colours. The roar of the crowd as the siren sounded (kicked up a notch once the heavens opened) was, in my opinion, the best moment the Eagles had delivered in a decade. Relief. Hope. Joy. Pride. Adam Simpson’s Eagles were for real, and the 2015 Qualifying Final proved it.

That is one of my favourite memories from subi oval. Winning that game also marked the point where we had beaten all other teams that season (except norf who got done in 2 weeks time). That 2015 team was great, it is a shame their inexperience cost them big time in the GF. At least most of them got redemption in 2018.
 

Ishmael_

Premiership Player
Apr 30, 2013
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The Hawthorn game was a fantastic game to be at, I went out afterwards and the buzz (amongst other things) kept me going into the wee hours.

I genuinely felt we could beat anyone after that game and in a way we had. For me, 2015 was the year where the unbelievable advantage that is the MCG factor was laid bare. For us as a club, but more importantly for the competition as a whole. There is no way Hawthorn would have completed that 3-peat if they were forced to play elsewhere. I still maintain that we were the best side that year, even if we failed in the GF.

Gee, it would have been grand if Freo waited another week before they went the full basket-case.
 

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Balls In

Brownlow Medallist
May 25, 2018
12,428
23,380
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The Hawthorn game was a fantastic game to be at, I went out afterwards and the buzz (amongst other things) kept me going into the wee hours.

I genuinely felt we could beat anyone after that game and in a way we had. For me, 2015 was the year where the unbelievable advantage that is the MCG factor was laid bare. For us as a club, but more importantly for the competition as a whole. There is no way Hawthorn would have completed that 3-peat if they were forced to play elsewhere. I still maintain that we were the best side that year, even if we failed in the GF.

Gee, it would have been grand if Freo waited another week before they went the full basket-case.
******* Fremantle had one job
 

ioppolo

This only ends one way.
Oct 3, 2010
27,221
25,626
Perth
AFL Club
West Coast
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Chelsea, OKC Thunder, Scorchers
While I’m not happy with how 2015 ultimately ended up, it was certainly a wild ride as a West Coast supporter and there is no guarantee that 2018 goes the way that it did if we win the 2015 flag
We appreciate 2018 that much more thanks to the shocker in 2015
 

Doashuey

Premiership Player
Sep 13, 2017
4,787
11,463
AFL Club
West Coast
How rare is it for a player mid game to get a standing O as well. Not a milestone, not coming back from a long term injury, not breaking teenagers jaws. None of the usual things we like giving standing ovations for, just a guy at the absolute top of his game.

I reckon that was one of the biggest cheers of the night, for anyone who can remember it. Can't find it on YouTube though.
Criminally under rated post.
Did LOL
 
Sep 21, 2004
36,435
25,027
Adel - SA - Aust - Earth
AFL Club
West Coast
Other Teams
Norwood & Liverpool.
While I’m not happy with how 2015 ultimately ended up, it was certainly a wild ride as a West Coast supporter and there is no guarantee that 2018 goes the way that it did if we win the 2015 flag
Agree with that.

I look back fondly at that Port/Shuey final as a huge step as well.

On SM-G925I using BigFooty.com mobile app
 
Sep 21, 2004
36,435
25,027
Adel - SA - Aust - Earth
AFL Club
West Coast
Other Teams
Norwood & Liverpool.
As much as I wanted Freo to win that game, that play still makes me laugh. All the momentum, all the play, ruined by an uncontested dropped mark in defence.
I still remember that. Horrible. I wonder how he feels. Literally the turning point.

On SM-G925I using BigFooty.com mobile app
 
Jun 5, 2004
9,132
6,650
AFL Club
West Coast
I’m going to be busy over the weekend so won’t be able to get anything up until Monday at the earliest

Forward Press if you want to go ahead before me feel free. I’ll still do mine later

Forward Press if you can confirm, your 48 hours can start. Otherwise it can start at 7:33pm tonight.

Keys can take his turn after that, but so we don't make it drag, Keys your deadline can be Monday night before we move on.

Also, if you guys want, feel free to direct message each other so you don't take the same game, just in case.
 

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