Where and when: The Gabba. Tuesday, September 1 (6.10pm AWST)

TV: Live on 7mate, Fox Footy, Kayo and the official AFL app

What it means for the Eagles: The race for a top four spot is officially on and West Coast will be desperate to register their 10^th win of the season with several clubs right on their hammer. A victory over the Bombers would put the fifth-placed Eagles right in the double chance mix and hold Collingwood (sixth) and St Kilda (seventh) at bay for another week.

The stat: Keep an eye on the skies tonight. West Coast is currently ranked equal first in the AFL for contested grabs (10.2 per game), whereas Essendon are 18^th in the standings (7.7).

The matchup: Jeremy McGovern v Joe Daniher

Two of the AFL’s most entertaining big men are set to collide when McGovern and Daniher go at it tonight. West Coast’s premier defender will be looking to bounce back following a quiet outing against Richmond, while Daniher will be brimming with confidence following a three-goal haul against the Hawks. If McGovern can rule the air and limit Daniher’s impact on the game it will go a long way to helping West Coast edge Essendon.

It’s a big week for: Lewis Jetta

The man with the deadliest boot in the AFL returns to our starting 22 for the first time since round four. West Coast fans have become accustomed to seeing Jetta launch lasers out of the defensive 50 for the past two years, but they’ll be hoping he can relive his 2012 glory days (Jetta led Sydney’s goal-kicking tally with 45 majors that year) and fire a few bullets through the big sticks against the Bombers.

Big call: Oscar Allen shines up forward and slots three goals at the Gabba.

The West Coast Eagles carved out another courageous win over Essendon at the Gabba tonight, putting the club within a whisker of finals after notching their 10^th victory of the season.

The highly committed Eagles won a gruelling 15-point victory over the Bombers, 9.60 (60) to 6.9 (45), in their third game in nine days.

They backed up from a gritty 12-point win over Greater Western Sydney and a 27-point defeat by Richmond to bounce back impressively. Now they have a five-day break before confronting the Western Bulldogs at Metricon Stadium next Sunday.

The only downside was the second hamstring strain of the season for skipper Luke Shuey. He did a few run-throughs at three-quarter time and bravely returned to action in the final term before pulling up sore late in the game.     

The last term exemplified the latter stage of the season with two battle-weary, but brave teams going at it without being able to land a significant blow against the opposition. It might have produced few highlights, but the closing moments of the third stanza proved decisive.

Essendon edged within 10 points mid-way through the quarter and were doing most of the attacking.

Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti kicked his third 10 minutes into the term and the Bombers looked threatening before the Eagles steadied on the back of Tom Cole’s impact.

First he got on his bike from half-back as the Eagles were on a fast break down the other wing. The footy finished in the hands of Jack Darling, who kicked deep for Cole to mark, opposed to Dyson Heppell.

He played on to snap around his body, kicking the first goal of his 52-game career. It came with the trademark celebration with teammates descended upon him, crowded him in celebrations.

A few minutes later he laid a tackle on Adam Saad that resulted in an illegal disposal call and finished with Ryan kicking his career-high fourth goal.

The Eagles appeared to have the game under control in the latter stages of the second term, thanks largely to their midfield ascendancy, where Nic Naitanui, Tim Kelly and Shuey in particular were damaging.

West Coast kicked three rapid-fire goals after about an eight minute stalemate to start the term.

Ryan and Darling were proving a handful for the Bombers defence and with Andrew Gaff also accumulating plenty of football it seemed the Eagles spent much of the quarter in their half.

Defensively, the old firm of Shannon Hurn, Jeremy McGovern and Brad Sheppard were doing their thing, repelling Bombers attacking moves and launching offensive missions of their own with Tom Cole and Liam Duggan joining in.

But late in the term Essendon burst back into life through McDonald-Tipungwuti, who kicked his second goal and then both Dyson Heppell and James Stewart hit the scoreboard – Stewart’s goal reviewed over a lunging touch from Barrass that was deemed inclusive. Umpires call stood, so it was full points.

The game opened with a highly competitive first that produced some great contests and shared opportunities.

Essendon had more disposals, but the Eagles were more dangerous when  going forward and made the most of their opportunities, leading at the first change by 15 points after creating an 11-9 edge in inside 50 entries.

Much of that was derived from centre clearances, with Nic Naitanui and Bailey Williams working nicely with the Eagles midfield. Luke Shuey and Tim Kelly were on early and that created opportunities for a new-look forward structure.

Ryan kicked the first goal of the game after some good work out of the middle by Naitanui and Shuey, Oscar Allen kicked the next from a free and then Jack Darling converted after a strong mark.

The highlight was Williams’ first goal in senior football deep into the quarter.

From a stoppage deep in the pocket, the ball towards Darling, who nudged it into the path of Williams who kicked it off the Gabba carpet with only seconds left on the clock.   

West Coast Eagles           4.1         7.3           9.5         9.6         60
Essendon                          1.4          4.5          5.8         6.9         45

Goals – West Coast Eagles:  Ryan 4; Darling 2; Allen, Williams, Cole.
            Essendon: McDonald-Tipungwuti 4; Heppell, Stewart.

Best – West Coast Eagles: Ryan, Naitanui, Gaff, Hurn, Kelly, Darling, Shuey.
          Essendon: Merrett, McDonald-Tipungwuti, Parish, Langford, Shiel, Ridley.

Injuries – Luke Shuey (West Coast) hamstring; Andrew McGrath (Essendon) ankle.