The West Coast Eagles Football Club was formed in 1986 and began competing in the then-Victorian Football League (now the Australian Football League) in 1987, as the VFL expanded into Western Australia. Since its inception the club has won three premierships, in 1992, 1994 and 2006, and competed in the finals in 20 of its 29 seasons.
Formation[]
After protracted lobbying by the West Australian Football Commission, the Victorian Football League voted on 1 October 1986 to admit a new Perth team for the 1987 season, along with one from Brisbane. Despite a $4 million licensing fee being payable upfront and strict conditions being placed on the new club's ability to recruit players from existing clubs, just eight of the twelve existing clubs voted for the new WA side.
Ahead of the league's vote, East Fremantle senior coach Ron Alexander was named as the coach of the new side on 22 September 1986.
The name "West Coast Eagles", colours of blue and gold and an initial 32-man squad headlined by North Melbourne's Ross Glendinning was revealed on 30 October 1986. The wedge tailed eagle was chosen as the mascot to reflect the fact that the new side would have to fly a significant amount to compete in the Melbourne-based competition.
A publicly listed company, Indian Pacific Limited, was floated in February 1987 to operate the new club, with fans able to purchase shares.
1987 season[]
Keen to make an impression in their first season, West Coast won their opening match against Richmond but from that point on alternated between strong, promising performances against experienced opposition and thrashings from classier outfits, including giving up more than 200 points to Sydney and over 190 points to Carlton. Despite that, at the half-way point of the season the fledgling Eagles sat inside the top five and looked a chance of a fairytale finals appearance. Sadly it was not to be, although West Coast finished with a very credible 11-11 record, just a game out of the finals.
Captain Glendinning led from the front, leading the club's goalkicking despite alternating between the forward and back halves throughout the season. He was beaten to the honour of being the first Club Champion by another player with previous VFL experience, midfielder Steve Malaxos.
Despite the promising first campaign, coach Ron Alexander was surprisingly sacked in favour of Swan Districts leader John Todd.
1988 season[]
After their history-making inaugural season, West Coast started 1988 strongly, winning their first three games to hit the top of the ladder. After a mid-season slump during which they lost five games in a row, the Eagles fought their way back into the top five, finishing fourth at the end of the home-and-away season and earning a place in their first-ever finals series. The elimination final ended in heartbreak as Melbourne won by just 2 points, but it marked a successful year for the young side.
Youngsters were chiefly responsible for the side's strong season, with tough midfielder John Worsfold having a breakout year to win the Club Champion award, ably assisted by Chris Mainwaring and rookie defender Guy McKenna. Some experienced VFL players lent solid support including former Footscray key position player Murray Rance who spent most of the year in defence, and skipper Glendinning who spent the season at full-forward and finished with 73 goals before announcing his retirement at the end of the year.
After successfully lobbying the league to level the playing field by allowing the club to increase its playing list and participate in the national draft, West Coast's first ever draft pick was Subiaco's Todd Breman.
1989 season[]
Under new captain Rance, West Coast disappointed early in 1989, failing to build on their inaugural finals appearance the previous season. The Eagles lost their first four games and won just two of the first 15 games, with the clear low point of the season coming in the form of the Windy Hill Massacre, a 142-point loss that set unwanted and yet to be broken records for the club's biggest loss and lowest score. The result seemed to stir the Eagles into action, the side winning their next three and five of the last seven games to climb off the bottom of the ladder into a slightly more respectable 11th place by the end of the season. It was not enough to save coach Todd's job, however, as he was replaced by Victorian Mick Malthouse at the end of the year.
McKenna improved on his impressive rookie year to win the Club Champion award as well as being selected in the VFL Team of the Year. Worsfold and Mainwaring continued to impress early in their careers along with Chris Lewis, and rookie full-forward Peter Sumich stepped into the hole (and the jumper) left by Glendinning to lead the side in goalscoring for the first of what would end up being many times.
1990 season[]
Under new coach Malthouse and new skipper Malaxos, West Coast started 1990 strongly, winning seven of their first nine games to sit in the top two on the ladder. After hitting a bit of a roadbump midseason, the Eagles recovered to win seven of their last eight games and stormed into their second-ever finals series full of confidence. They managed to contribute to a piece of history in the qualifying final against Collingwood when Sumich's set shot from the pocket after the siren hit the post to tie the scores, resulting in the two sides having to return the following week. West Coast were smashed in the replay, but then returned to Waverley the following week (without Malaxos, who had been controversially dropped) for a grudge match against Melbourne, who had beaten the Eagles in their first final two years previously. This time the Eagles defeated the Dees to book a spot in their first preliminary final, but that was as far as they went as Essendon knocked them out of the premiership race the following week.
Lewis had a breakout season and was rewarded with selection in the All-AFL side as well as winning the Club Champion award. He was joined in the All-AFL side by Worsfold, the tough young defender who had stepped into the captaincy after Malaxos' omission. Full-forward Sumich improved on his rookie season to kick a club record 90 goals, including a bag of 8 against the Swans and five hauls of 6 goals. Some other talented youngsters also impressed, including draft bargains Dean Kemp and Brett Heady.
1991, great season
1992 season - first premiership[]
West Coast came out of the blocks slowly and 7 rounds into the season, sat well back in 10th spot with just 2 wins and a draw. They then found their feet, winning 7 of the next 8 games to entrench themselves in the top six. Engaged in a battle for a top two spot with Geelong and Footscray for the last few rounds, a poor loss to the Bulldogs in Melbourne in the second-last round saw them slip to fourth and a tough assignment against the Hawks in a sudden-death final.
The Eagles got their revenge on Hawthorn, knocking the reigning premiers out of the finals in an exciting shootout at Subiaco, and earned a double chance the following week after St Kilda upset Collingwood in the other elimination final. After knocking off Geelong at the MCG, the Eagles were heading to their second straight grand final, and had a week off while the Dogs and Cats battled it out for the opportunity to face them. Geelong won their way through, and in a hard-fought contest West Coast took the lead in the third quarter and stormed home to win an historic first flag, the first time the premiership cup had left Victoria.
Kemp was the standout throughout the season, the blonde boy from Kalgoorlie winning the Club Champion award comfortably and earning selection in the All-Australian side. He had plenty of help through the middle, with Mainwaring, Matera and Turley all having strong seasons. Matera's year was not quite up to the standard of his outstanding 1991, but he more than made up for it with a superb effort in the Grand Final. Sumich once again easily topped the goalkicking, with his 82 goals the fourth highest across the league and including a haul of 11 against Essendon and a couple of bags of 8.
1993 season[]
Fresh from their historic premiership win, West Coast started the 1993 season strongly and spent much of the early months in the upper reaches of the ladder. A few unfortunate losses saw them slip, and when Essendon won a thriller at the MCG the Eagles worryingly sat outside the top six with just six rounds to play. Four straight wins saw them climb back into second, but losses to Footscray and Geelong threatened to knock them out of the finals race altogether. West Coast narrowly qualified for the finals ahead of Geelong on percentage, and then upset North Melbourne to keep their premiership defence alive. It was not to last, however, with a semi-final loss to eventual premiers Essendon ending the Eagles' season.
For the first time two players could not be split for the Club Champion award, with Jakovich and unassuming midfielder Don Pyke sharing the honour. Other premiership stars to follow up with strong seasons included Matera and McKenna, both of whom were named in the All-Australian side, and McIntosh who proved himself extremely useful at both ends of the ground. Sumich had another good year in front of goal, with his final tally of 76 including a season-opening 7 goal effort against the Bombers and a handful of half-dozen hauls. On the downside, the popular Turley announced a surprise retirement early in the season, although he would return in 1994.
1994 season - second premiership[]
West Coast started strongly and a couple of months into the season had taken top spot, where they remained for most of the year. After beating Footscray in the final round to win the minor premiership for the first time since 1991, the Eagles squeaked past Collingwood in the opening round of the finals to earn a week off. Melbourne proved no match in the prelim, and West Coast scheduled another date with Geelong on the final day of the season. This time they made short work of the Cats, winning by 80 points to win the club's second flag.
Jakovich won a second Club Champion award, and was also named in the All-Australian side for the first time. He was joined by McKenna and Matera, both of whom were in the side for the third time, and David Hart following a career-best year by the back pocket. Small forward Shane Bond was named the club's best rookie after a successful debut season in which he won a premiership medal.
Links[]
http://www.westcoasteagles.com.au/history/timeline
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Coast_Eagles
Ron Carter, The Age (2 October 1986, p 38), "Perth, Brisbane join league": https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=MDQ-9Oe3GGUC&dat=19861002&printsec=frontpage&hl=en
Patrick Smithers, The Age (31 October 1986, p 34), "West Coast Eagles fly their colours": https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=MDQ-9Oe3GGUC&dat=19861031&printsec=frontpage&hl=en