West Coast’s abilities have been likened to an “under 14s” staff with gamers “not even trying” in scathing criticism from their 171-point SCG horror present.
The Eagles fell to their fourth 100-plus level defeat within the house of eight video games as they coughed up their worst-ever loss and their worst rating conceded in membership historical past on Saturday.
Fox Footy’s Leigh Montagna didn’t maintain again in his evaluation of the darkest day in West Coast historical past, calling out a number of skilled gamers for his or her “pretending”.
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He confirmed clips from the primary quarter the place the likes of Dom Sheed, Jack Petruccelle and Jayden Hunt all failed of their efforts.
“This is the first quarter – very first centre bounce. If you’re the ruck you’ve got a responsibility. (Swan Tom) Hickey grabbed it out the first two centre clearances in a row,” he lamented on First Crack.
“These aren’t the kids … you see an experienced player in Jayden Hunt – look at the gap he’s got on (Errol) Gulden,” he added to imaginative and prescient of Gulden sprinting away to Hunt’s jogging.
“A young defender (Brady Hough) – I’m not sure what his mindset is early in this game to sit off Isaac Heeney and almost being a goal keeper which said to me there are some alarm bells here.
“Watch the ruck work – non competitive. And that’s from Bailey Williams who has played over 50 games now and he’s 23 years of age.
“Petruccelle just gets caught ball watching (as a defender) in his own defensive 50.
“You get to some real under-14s stuff – you can’t have five players all run to one player on the boundary line and think that’s modern AFL football.
“Some of the efforts from senior players – Petruccelle, that’s not even trying to make a tackle. I’m not sure what that is, not once but twice!
“You see Dom Sheed come in – I’m really disappointed with how Dom Sheed has been going – he puts up one arm! This is first quarter not fourth quarter.
“And you’ve got a 10-gamer in Noah Long who ran from the halfback flank – he ran past eight of his senior teammates to try and lay a tackle. That’s what should be happening from the senior players.
“Dom Sheed is one of those players running around at the moment who pretends he’s trying – particularly defensively but he’s not really and they are letting the senior group down.
“The rest of the team’s head dropped and they had no hope.”
The Eagles have been so dangerous, they coughed up an 18-goal run at one stage earlier than the ultimate siren might finish the massacre.
“It was horrible,” Fox Footy’s David King added.
“I look at guys like (Tim) Kelly and (Luke) Shuey who are running themselves into the ground.
“The harder they are trying, the poorer the result they are getting because they are trying to cover for everyone.
“(Swan) Luke Parker just ripped their hearts out – and this is the start of the match.
“He puts a shoulder into Elliot Yeo and he (Yeo) just doesn’t want to engage. Doesn’t want to go with him, trailing … it’s all mindset stuff. Are you actually engaging or are you just there?
“The confusion is there. You can see it – it’s strip it back now.
“The system’s that far gone and the season’s that far over it’s a start again.”
The damning imaginative and prescient comes solely hours after West Coast Eagles chairman Paul Fitzpatrick pledged to face by embattled coach Adam Simpson – and referred to as for the membership’s senior gamers to do higher.
“We do have faith that Adam can take this team forward and we also believe in the path we need to take to fight our way back,” he wrote.
“We need our senior players to set a better example for them. With a couple of exceptions many of the experienced players were well down yesterday.”
Originally printed as ‘Under-14s stuff’: Inept Eagles stars uncovered ‘not even trying’ in membership’s worst second
Source: www.news.com.au