West Coast moved within one game of the top-five following a scrappy win over Perth at Mineral Resources Park on Saturday.
The Eagles jumped out to an early lead in the first term and never looked back, prevailing 9.17 (71) to 7.10 (52).
Defender Tom Cole (24 disposals) was a standout for the Eagles, while Keegan Brooksby and Nathan Vardy each booted three goals.
Brant Colledge was the Demons’ best, collecting a game-high 27 disposals.
Mitchell Browne got the home side going with the first goal of the game, before Brooksby hit back a minute later to level the scores.
Acting West Coast captain Brady Grey worked his way through traffic and snapped truly for the Eagles’ second goal of the game, before Dakota Baldwin-Wright replied with a set shot from 40 metres out.
Goals to Nathan Vardy, Nick Reid and Brendon Ah Chee helped the Eagles build a commanding 20-point lead at the first break.
The second quarter proved to be a costly one for the Eagles, as inaccuracy in front of goal limited the away side’s ability to build on an early lead.
Goals to Marshall Jones and Zareth Roe helped the Demons cut the deficit to just two goals at the main break, as the Eagles took a 40-28 lead at half-time.
The third term proved to be a scrappy contest as both sides struggled to hit the scoreboard.
But goals to Brooksby and Vardy helped the Eagles establish a 19-point buffer at the final change.
An early goal to Vardy pushed the Eagles’ lead to 26-points early in the fourth, before Brooksby booted his third goal of the game to put the result beyond doubt.
Late goals to Matthew Rogers and Cody Leggett gave West Coast a minor scare, but it was to no avail, as the Eagles ran out 19-point winners.
The win now places West Coast just one game outside the top-five with two weeks remaining in the season.
Stand-in skipper Grey said he was thrilled with the victory.
“It was a pretty quick game today,” Grey said.
“Obviously Perth win today and they make finals, so it was a pretty big occasion for them and we knew they were going to come out pretty hard.
“We set ourselves for that and I thought we counteracted that pretty well in the first quarter and as the game slowed down our skill level kind of came through, which was really pleasing.”
The Eagles will now shift their attention to their Friday night clash with East Perth.
Grey said the team was looking forward to the challenge and would be eager to avenge their round six loss to the Royals.
“Last time we played East Perth we got pretty embarrassed,” he said.
“So it’s going to be a big occasion for us, but we’ll just focus on our recovery, train well during the week and make sure we’re ready to go.”
