(301st Eagles player)
Late-blooming Victorian midfielder Tom McCarthy was taken by West Coast with the top pick in the 2025 mid-season draft.
West Coast career[]
Having played junior football with Cheltenham in suburban Melbourne, McCarthy spent several years in the amateurs and a year with Southern Football League club Highett before joining Richmond's VFL program in 2024. He had a strong start to the 2025 season and was widely considered the top prospect in the mid-season draft, where West Coast had the first pick for the third time in four years. On being drafted, McCarthy was described as a a strong runner and good ball user with the smarts to play multiple positions.[1]
After a brief apprenticeship in the reserves, McCarthy was called up to debut against Carlton, setting a club record with 31 disposals on debut and unsurprisingly playing every game from that point on. Initially used in the backline, he shifted into the midfield late in the season.
Stats[]
| AFL | Gm | G | B | K | M | H | D | T | Cl | WAFL | Gm | G | B | K | M | H | D | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 154 | 46 | 82 | 236 | 21 | 16 | WCE | 2 | 1 | 0 | 31 | 10 | 15 | 46 | 1 | |
| Tot | 10 | 0 | 1 | 154 | 46 | 82 | 236 | 21 | 16 | ||||||||||
| Avg | 0.0 | 15.4 | 4.6 | 8.2 | 23.6 | 2.1 | 1.6 |
References[]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_McCarthy_(footballer)
https://afltables.com/afl/stats/players/T/Tom_McCarthy.html
https://wafl.com.au/player/tom-mccarthy
https://www.playhq.com/public/profile/fc701cff-ee15-404b-a550-f2690dab0e65/statistics
- ↑ westcoasteagles.com.au (28 May 2025), "Eagles swoop on McCarthy with No.1 pick": https://www.westcoasteagles.com.au/news/1793008/eagles-swoop-on-mccarthy-with-no1-pick
| Current playing squad |
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1. Duursma, 2. Waterman, 3. Baker, 4. Starcevich, 5. Lindsay, 6. Yeo, 7. Ginbey, 8. Hewett |