In perfect conditions for football, the Eagles started strongly and led at quarter-time before the visitors kicked away to a 9.4 (58) to 18.10 (118) victory.

Senior coach Kyal Horsley said it was challenging taking on last year’s grand finalists and the current top team, but it offered some valuable insights.

“Unfortunately, we couldn’t stay with them over the course of four quarters,” Horsley said.

“There were some clear things to work on to close the gap to the best teams in the competition.”

Top Performers:

Tom Edwards-Baldwin

This was Tom's third game playing as an inside mid and he did it all. Leading the team for contested possessions, tackles, pressure acts, clearances and hit the score board kicking a goal.

Rhett Bazzo

Our back six were under siege for big periods of this game and Rhett was able to consistently win or half his contest while also providing good drive out of the back line with 15 possessions at 87% effectiveness.

Noah Long

Noah split his time between wing and forward and was one of our best. High work rate, strong in the contest and classy with ball in hand, a complete game from Noah.

AFL Listed Players:

Clay Hall

Clay was strong at the coal face all game with nine clearances and four tackles but was also effective with his spread finding the ball on the outside with 17 uncontested possessions.

Coen Livingstone

Coen split his time 50/50 between ruck and forward and competed hard against the competition’s premier ruckman in Scott Jones. He had a real impact around the stoppage with four clearances, while up forward was rarely beaten in the air. Coen also provided good ground level pressure with three inside 50 tackles.

Harry Barnett

Harry Barnett split his time 50/50 between ruck and forward. He competed hard in the ruck against Jones and mitigated his impact. It was nice to see him assert his presence in the air with three contested marks, which is what he has been working hard on within his game.

Jack Petruccelle

Unfortunately for Petch he was injured early in the second quarter. He was having an impact in the game and his speed and reaction time was noticeable.

Jack Williams

It was a ‘nearly’ day for Jack. He took some strong marks and looked threatening all game but dropped a few he normally wouldn’t. With the supply drying up in the second half, he finished the day with six marks and two goals.

Tyrell Dewar

Tyrell played down back again and gave us some good bounce. He was able to take ground with his speed and then use his driving kick to get us good field position.

Lucca Grego

Lucca was up for the fight against a strong East Perth inside midfield. He made some big tackles and the work he is putting in with his inside craft is starting to show through. While his effort didn’t produce big numbers in this match, it will start to elevate his inside game to another level.

Jobe Shanahan

While Jobe’s output was down numbers-wise, his work rate and tenacity to keep presenting and working for the team was evident. He was able to impact the game at ground level with five forward half tackles which created a chance to score for others.

Loch Rawlinson

Loch was the invincible man for parts of this game. He got himself in good spots but as a team we failed to capitalise on this position. To his credit he kept working at intensity throughout the full four quarters.

Hamish Davis

Hamish worked tirelessly all game on the wing with some time up forward. He saved the day on multiple occasions with his support on the open side and was rewarded up the other end with a nice goal on the run.

Malakai Champion

Malakai was our most effective player with ball in hand. He made quick decisions and used the available option which opened the game up for others. While he didn’t hit the scoreboard, he had the most score involvements for the team.