Rarely has a player dominated a grand final stats sheet as Luke Shuey did on Saturday. If ever.

An analysis of the Eagles stats in the five-point win over Collingwood at the MCG for the club’s fourth premiership show just why Shuey won the Norm Smith Medal.

To go with his 34 disposals, which equalled the club grand final record of Andrew Gaff in 2015, Shuey had eight tackles, nine clearances, 19 contested possessions, 18 uncontested possessions, eight inside 50s and two goal assists.

So not only did he lead the Eagles in disposals but he also topped the team in tackles, clearances, contested possessions and inside 50s, and was equal team high for uncontested possessions and goal assists in the epic premiership decider.

And he was one of eight single goal-kickers which combined with Josh Kennedy’s three to give the Eagles a winning score.

Significantly, too, Dom Sheed’s 32 possessions on Saturday made him just the third Eagles player to reach 30 in a grand final behind Gaff’s 34 in 2015 and Shuey’s 34 on Saturday.

Shuey’s eight tackles was also a club grand final record, while Willie Rioli’s seven tackles on Saturday equalled the previous best in a grand final of Chris Waterman in 1992 and Matt Priddis in 2015.

Shuey’s 19 contested possessions also was a club record in a grand final, surpassing Chris Judd’s 17 in 2005 and 2006.

Josh Kennedy’s 11 marks was a club grand final record, while Tom Barrass’ 10 equalled the previous best of Adam Selwood and Beau Waters in 2006

Jack Darling’s four contested marks was a club grand final record, while Barrass and Jeremy McGovern, each with three, equalled the previous best of Kasey Green in 2005 and Quinten Lynch in 2006.

Kennedy’s five marks inside 50 was an equal club grand final record, matching Lynch’s five in 2006.

McGovern’s six rebound 50’s equalled the club grand final best of Dean Cox in 2005, and Sam Butler, Andrew Embley and Drew Banfield in 2015.

And Will Schofield became just the sixth player in club history to play 100 per cent game time in a grand final after Darren Glass, Chad Fletcher and Adam Hunter in 2005, Hunter in 2006 and Kennedy in 2015.

In near misses, Shuey’s eight inside 50’s was two short of Michael Braun’s club grand final record 10 in 2006, Shuey’s nine clearances was two short of Judd’s 11 in 2005, and Barrass’ 13 one-percenters was one short of Glass’ 14 in 2005.

Shuey’s 34 grand final possessions on Saturday was, with Gaff’s 34 in 2015, the equal eighth best in a grand final since West Coast joined the competition in 1987.

MOST DISPOSALS IN A GRAND FINAL SINCE 1987

Poss

Player

Club

Year

39

Simon Black

Brisbane

2003

37

Kane Cornes

Port Adel

2007

37

Jordan Lewis

Hawthorn

2014

37

Matt Crouch

Adelaide

2017

36

Robert Harvey

St.Kilda

1997

36

Peter Burgoyne

Port Adel

2007

35

Daryn Cresswell

Sydney

1996

35

Luke Hodge

Hawthorn

2014

34

Steve Johnson

Geelong

2008

34

Gary Ablett Jnr

Geelong

2008

34

Andrew Gaff

W/Coast

2015

34

Sam Mitchell

Hawthorn

2015

34

Josh Kennedy

Sydney

2016

34

Luke Shuey

W/Coast

2018

 

Saturday’s epic win takes the number of names on the Eagles’ Premiership Honour Roll to 69, including 15 dual premiership players from the 1992-94 era, plus Drew Banfield, who, remarkably, won a flag in 1994 and 2006.

Daniel Venables became the fourth-youngest Eagles premiership player and the eighth who has tasted the ultimate success before his 21st birthday.

YOUNGEST PREMIERSHIP PLAYERS

Years

Days

Player

Year

19

84

Shane Bond

1994

19

182

Mitchell White

1992

19

186

Glen Jakovich

1992

19

314

Daniel Venables

2018

19

342

Ashley McIntosh

1992

20

184

Beau Waters

2006

20

216

Drew Banfield

1994

20

259

Sam Butler

2006

Mark LeCras became the second-oldest Eagles premiership player and the eighth to have won a flag after his 30th birthday.

OLDEST PREMIERSHIP PLAYERS

Years

Days

Players

Year

32

215

Drew Banfield

2006

32

30

Mark LeCras

2018

31

35

Josh Kennedy

2018

31

25

Shannon Hurn

2018

30

320

Peter Wilson

1994

30

281

Dwayne Lamb

1992

30

232

Daniel Chick

2006

30

212

David Hart

1994

Liam Ryan (13 games) and Daniel Venables (15 games) became the two West Coast players who waited the shortest time to win a flag, with Willie Rioli (24 games) slotting into eighth spot on the same list.

SHORTEST WAIT TO A PREMIERSHIP

Games

Player

Year

13

Liam Ryan

2018

15

Daniel Venables

2018

16

Glen Jakovich

1991

17

Ashley McIntosh

1991

18

Tony Evans

1992

18

Jason Ball

1994

21

Shane Bond

1994

24

Willie Rioli

2018

And Shannon Hurn, whose breakthrough flag came in his 248th game, completed the second longest wait in club history.

LONGEST WAIT TO A PREMIERSHIP

Games

Player

Year

265

Drew Banfield

2006

248

Shannon Hurn

2018

233

Daniel Chick *

2006

231

Ben Cousins

2006

221

Josh Kennedy *

2018

219

Mark LeCras

2018

188

Jack Redden *

2018

* denotes career games. Chick had played 84 Eagles games, Kennedy 199 and Redden 59.

The Eagles team on Saturday was the oldest of the club’s seven grand final sides, 131 days per player older than the losing 2015 side, and 12 days per player short of a year older than the 2006 premiership side.

With a total games experience of 2657 the 2018 side was the club’s most experienced grand final and premiership side, just five games in total more than the 2006 side.

GRAND FINAL TEAMS - AGE / EXPERIENCE

Year

Average Age

Experience

 

Years

Days

Games

1991

23

348

1298

1992

24

165

1594

1994

25

119

2096

2005

24

98

2125

2006

25

83

2652

2015

25

341

2479

2018

26

107

2657

The West Coast Eagles Premiership Honour Roll 1987-2018 is

TWO PREMIERSHIPS: Michael Brennan, Tony Evans, Brett Heady, Glen Jakovich, Dean Kemp, Chris Lewis, Chris Mainwaring, Peter Matera, Ashley McIntosh, Guy McKenna, Don Pyke, Peter Sumich, Chris Waterman, Peter Wilson, John Worsfold (1992-94), Drew Banfield (1994-2006).

ONE PREMIERSHIP: Paul Harding, Dayne Lamb, Karl Langdon, Craig Turley, Mitchell White (1992); Jason Ball, Shane Bond, David Hart, David Hynes, Ryan Turnbull (1994);  Steven Armstrong, Michael Braun, Sam Butler, Daniel Chick, Ben Cousins, Dean Cox, Andrew Embley, Chad Fletcher, Darren Glass, Ashley Hansen, Adam Hunter, Brett Jones, Rowan Jones, Chris Judd, Daniel Kerr, Quinten Lynch, Mark Seaby, Adam Selwood, Tyson Stenglein, Beau Waters, David Wirrpanda (2006), Tom Barrass, Tom Cole, Jamie Cripps, Jack Darling, Liam Duggan, Shannon Hurn, Mark Hutchings, Lewis Jetta, Jack Kennedy, Mark LeCras, Scott Lycett, Chris Masten, Jeremy McGovern, Jack Redden, Willie Rioli, Liam Ryan, Will Schofield, Luke Shuey, Dom Scheed, Nathan Vardy, Daniel Venables, Elliot Yeo, (2018).