Founded in 1986, and entering the competition in 1987, the West Coast Eagles are now firmly established as an AFL mainstay, and a club that prides itself on its success. With the Eagles heading into the new Perth Stadium for the 2018 season, and with a rebranding taking place in the 2017 offseason, there is a definite sense of a new era beckoning for West Coast.
It didn’t take long for West Coast to find their feet, and then start tearing up the competition. Under the coaching prowess of Mick Malthouse who was appointed in 1990, the Eagles enjoyed a decade of success, and remarkably secured a finals spot for ten straight years. With Malthouse cutting an inspirational figure off the park, and club legend John Worsfold skippering his team on the park, the Eagles were a dominant force, winning the flag in 1992 and 1994.
The 1992 premiership was the first won by a team outside of Victoria, and for a club that relishes the underdog tag, and sees itself as having to overcome adversity to even play in the AFL, this was a massive achievement.
After excelling as the club’s captain, Worsfold turned his hand to coaching, and took up the role as the Eagles’ head coach in 2002, staying in the role until 2014. With the dynamite midfield of Chris Judd, Ben Cousins and Daniel Kerr, Worsfold led his team to their third premiership in 2006.
However, West Coast’s image was soon tarnished, with the exposure of a drug culture largely embodied by Ben Cousins rocking the club to the core. After a 46-point thumping by the Hawks in the 2015 Grand Final, the Eagles will be looking to put these two unflattering sections of their history well in the past. The dawning of a new era on the West Coast provides the perfect opportunity to do so.
