Fremantle copped the full brunt of a Nic Naitanui masterclass, but it’s the rest of the AFL competition that will now be quaking in their boots as West Coast’s premiership defence gains pace.
The Eagles moved a game clear in second spot with their 91-point shellacking of arch-rivals Fremantle on Saturday night.
West Coast conceded just two goals for the match, with the intercept prowess of Jeremy McGovern, Brad Sheppard, Shannon Hurn, and Tom Barrass proving crucial.
But it’s the hot form of Naitanui that will have opposition observers on edge.
Naitanui put on a clearance masterclass in the 19.8 (122) to 2.19 (31) win, with his hot form helping the Eagles to boot 12 straight goals at one stage.
His work at ground level was just as crucial.
Naitanui, playing just 52 per cent of game time in his second match back from his second knee reconstruction, finished with 14 disposals, 23 hit outs, six clearances, and a game-high three score assists.
“We have missed Nic,” Eagles coach Adam Simpson said.
“We had him for 17 weeks last year and it was really unfortunate he wasn’t there at the back end of the season. We are a better team with him in it.
“There is some mental scarring when you do two knees so dealing with that – it is a credit to Nic that he can let himself go and carry what he has been carrying being 114 or 115kg in the most combative position on the ground and he is probably the best at it.
“He has held up his end of the bargain.”
Naitanui’s progress will receive another test when he comes up against All-Australian ruckman Brodie Grundy in Friday night’s blockbuster against Collingwood in Perth.
With Geelong losing two of their past three games and Collingwood hitting a worrying form slump, West Coast are now the form team of the competition.
Simpson is confident his players will be able to handle the growing hype surrounding their premiership defence.
“We have been going all right for a while,” Simpson said with a wry smile when asked about his team sneaking up on the rest of the field.
“I think our boys know how to handle expectations, Being part of our club, there’s always expectations. There was the first day I got here.
“The resilience that the players have brought in the last two or three years, that’s probably been the pleasing thing for us as a coaching group.
“We don’t do a lot of change with strategy or tactics, we let our players work through it.
“They’re at that mature age … they’ve been through some experiences where they know what to do at the right time.”
West Coast forward Josh Kennedy, who missed the win over Fremantle with the flu, is set to return against the Magpies.
