Senior coach Andrew McQualter says West Coast’s encouraging start to the season has helped fuel belief within his young group, while reinforcing the need to stay grounded as the Eagles prepare to face Sydney at Optus Stadium this Saturday.

Speaking to the media on Wednesday, McQualter said early wins had been welcomed, but stressed the club’s focus remained firmly on continual growth.

“It's always positive to get some scoreboard outcome, but we've really handled the weeks the same as we did last year,” McQualter said.

“Our review process has stayed the same. We've been able to show things that we're doing well that's helping us get results, but we've got so much growth in our game still.

“We're a long way away from where our finished product will be, and that's exciting for us.”

While McQualter acknowledged the importance of celebrating wins, he said the turnaround between games left little time to dwell on results.

“You've got to celebrate your wins, and we did spend that night after the game enjoying it, but you don't really have a choice, you've got to move on really quickly,” McQualter said.

“It's a six-day break into the Swans, who have started the season well. Our guys are driven, we understand where we want to get to and there's a lot of work to do.”

McQualter said early-season success was particularly valuable for a developing group, helping reinforce confidence in the club’s direction.

“Ultimately we're judged by outcome and scoreboard,” McQualter said.

“All it does is fuel belief for our players and build confidence that what we're doing can stack up against other AFL teams. So we're building that belief and a bit of reward is good for our guys.”

The Eagles face a significant challenge against a Sydney side that has added speed to its ball movement and could regain star midfielder Isaac Heeney from a hamstring injury.

“They're certainly much faster with the ball than last year, so our defence is going to have to be at a really high level,” McQualter said.

“It’s not totally dissimilar to Port Adelaide in the way they play. We had some good results in that space on the weekend, but we’ll need to do it again.”

West Coast will need to reshuffle its midfield mix this week with Elliot Yeo (adductor injury) and Dev Robertson (suspension) unavailable, but McQualter expressed confidence in the club’s depth.

“They're two of our bulls, contested ball players, so it's not easy to replace that,” McQualter said.

“But we're lucky we’ve got some real depth in that space and we’ll shuffle some magnets and do the best we can in there.”

McQualter also praised the impact of emerging key forward Jobe Shanahan following his eye-catching intercept mark last weekend.

“We know he can play at both ends of the ground. He's still only 19 and there will be challenges along the way, but his future is really bright,” McQualter said.

No.1 draft pick Willem Duursma’s versatility remains a discussion point for match committee, with McQualter impressed by his early influence.

“He's been really influential for us on the wing,” McQualter said.

“We just need to decide whether to settle him in one spot or keep shuffling him around and we'll work through that.”

McQualter also lauded Harley Reid’s most complete performance to date, highlighting his improved running capacity and contest involvement.

“He was really strong and influential for us,” McQualter said.

“He's built his ability up to cover the ground, which is the biggest change in Harley's game.

“There's a lot more growth to Harley as well, which is exciting.”