Senior coach Andrew McQualter has lauded his side’s resilience and growing maturity after West Coast produced another stirring fightback to claim a two-point victory on Sunday over Port Adelaide.

The Eagles were again challenged early, conceding five goals in a first quarter McQualter described as an ongoing issue, but steadied behind influential performances from leaders and emerging young stars to turn the contest after half-time.

“I think it’s probably the resilience shown in the game,” McQualter said post-match.

“To be behind the eightball, the crowd against us, the scoreboard against us, and then lose Elliot Yeo at half-time, I just think the group’s resilience is starting to shine through.

“Young players stood up in huge moments, and so did our leaders.”

Yeo was instrumental in a momentum‑shifting in the second term before leaving the ground with a groin issue.

“We don’t think it’s serious, but clearly he wasn’t able to come back on,” McQualter said.

“Elliot was in pretty good spirits after the game. We’ll scan it and hopefully he doesn’t miss too much footy.”

With Yeo sidelined, the Eagles relied on others to take control.

Tim Kelly (23 disposals, seven clearances) delivered a dominant third quarter, Harley Reid (21, six) produced two crucial goals and big moments when the game was on the line, and no.1 draft pick Willem Duursma (20, four) impressed with his composure.

Jake Waterman bagged four goals – including a 60m bomb to hand the Eagles a big enough buffer before the Power surged in the dying stages.

“I thought Tim Kelly’s third quarter was as good as football as I’ve seen him play,” McQualter said.

“Harley had huge moments and finished his work, which was awesome, and Willem showed what we expect of him.

“I thought Jake was huge, one of our leaders who stood up today.

“His ability to finish, he's proving to be a real focal point for us at the moment, which is great.”

Key forward Jobe Shanahan again delivered in a pressure moment with a clutch pack mark in the desperate last seconds, continuing an already impressive second season at AFL level. 

“It was pretty special,” McQualter said.

“He had some huge moments today, particularly behind the ball. We love him in our team and he’s going to be a great player for a long time and he’s continuing to grow.”

With a six‑day break before taking on the Sydney Swans at Optus Stadium on Sunday, McQualter said the challenge again is to reset quickly and continue building.

“It’s a pretty big challenge, but hopefully we fill the stadium and get it as loud as it was last week - it was an awesome atmosphere.”