West Coast coach Adam Simpson says the club’s bye has come at a perfect time, but the Eagles are already bracing for the very real prospect of losing Jack Darling for a crucial stretch of games.
The Eagles enter their bye week one game clear on top of the table following a 10-match winning run.
But they lost some of their aura on Saturday night when St Kilda fought back from 48 points down in the last term to close the final margin to just 13 points.
Star forward Darling went down with an ankle injury in the opening quarter, with the Eagles now sweating on the results of scans.
Darling has been in the form of his life this season, and his likely absence for at least the near future means West Coast will need to rely on Josh Kennedy to once again spearhead the forward line.
Kennedy booted six goals against the Saints – including four in a dominant third term – to help lead his side to the 16.5 (101) to 14.4 (88) win.
Simpson said his side will need to lean on Kennedy while Darling is out injured.
West Coast take on Sydney (SCG), Essendon (home), Adelaide (Adelaide Oval) and GWS (home) after the bye.
“He missed all pre-season (with a foot and knee injury),” Simpson said of Kennedy.
“We’ve been cautious about his minutes, and I’m really glad he’s getting more and more like himself.
“When Jack went down, I thought Josh played this quarter of footy that’s pretty rare, even for him.
“It’s just a reminder of what he can do, and his leadership off the ball and pressure was exceptional.
“(With Darling injured), now we’re going to have to lean on Josh.”
Simpson said the bye had come at a good time.
“Perhaps maybe some of our players were already on their break halfway through that last (quarter),” Simpson said.
“We’ve got some sore players.
“We get a good chance to reassess where we’re at, set some new goals, rest.
“We need to be really careful we don’t go too hard on players about that last quarter.
“We need to look at it, and we need to review it, but I’m not going to hang them for it.”
Star midfielder Luke Shuey, who was a late withdrawal, is set to return for the June 15 clash with Sydney at the SCG.
