Andrew McQualter believes West Coast are heading in the right direction despite acknowledging there is still significant improvement ahead.
The Eagles used the bye week to assess the first half of the season before they travel to Melbourne for Saturday’s clash with Carlton at Marvel Stadium.
Returning from the mid-season break after conducting a thorough review of their game and environment, McQualter said the findings largely reinforced the direction the team has already been taking.
“We did do a deep dive into our game, into our environment, into everything, but we also didn’t learn much because we do it every week,” McQualter said.
“We understand, we’re really clear on where we’re at, what we’re doing well and what we need to improve on.
“There’ll be some tweaks for sure, but it won’t be significant. We think our last six or eight weeks we’ve been building.
“We’re nowhere near where we need to be and we’ve still got a lot of room for improvement, but we think that we’re prioritising the right things in the game at the moment and our players are buying into that.”
Carlton enters Saturday’s contest in strong form, having won five consecutive matches under interim coach Josh Fraser, and McQualter expects a significant challenge from a side that has found a strong balance between control and attacking intent.
“I think their defensive system is really sound at the moment,” McQualter said.
“They look committed to playing that side of the ball.
“They’ve definitely got a bit more control in their game and their strength for years has been around the contest, so that hasn’t changed.”
The bye also provided key forward Jake Waterman with an opportunity to reset after a challenging period in front of goal, and McQualter was pleased with the way the All-Australian attacked the week.
“Jake’s had a great bye. He’s trained really well over the last week as well,” McQualter said.
“I’m certain you’ll see the same version of Jake Waterman competitiveness-wise, and he’s going to continue to work on his finish.”
The Eagles coach also praised No.1 draft pick Willem Duursma, who continues to impress in his debut AFL season with his versatility and commitment to both sides of the game.
“Willem’s been able to come into an AFL team as a first-year 18-year-old, play on the wing, play inside midfield and influence games in different ways,” McQualter said.
“He cares about the defensive side of the game, which dare I say is slightly unusual for a No.1 draft pick.”
McQualter also highlighted the continued development of defender Rhett Bazzo, who has established himself as an important contributor in West Coast’s backline this season.
“I think Rhett’s really improved his football this year,” McQualter said.
“He’s still working on his game, but he’s really stepped up and played an important role for our team this year, which is great.”
