Five-time premiership player Dermott Brereton has been impressed with the West Coast Eagles’ start to the season, saying they could win up to 15 games in 2018.
The Eagles were widely tipped to slide out of the top eight this year, but after knocking off Geelong by 15 points yesterday, Adam Simpson’s men are 2-1, something Brereton has taken notice of.
“Are we seeing the West Coast Eagles return to what we assumed they were going to be after they made the Grand Final?” he told SEN Afternoons.
“They’re not an old team. They became old when Sammy (Sam Mitchell) went over there, I thought he was fantastic, but he gave their list an older edge to it.
“After the Grand Final loss, they needed midfield depth.
“They went out and got a few players and then they increased their depth with Sam Mitchell and I thought they would rocket back up the ladder, but they just got a bit old, tired and slow in between the 50 metre arcs.
“With Nic Naitanui being back leading the charge, they might be resurgent.
“They might be a 14-15 win team this year.”
Along with the inclusion of Nic Naitanui, the Hawthorn champion believes youngster Liam Ryan, and the internal improvement of the likes of Jack Redden and Lewis Jetta, has revitalised West Coast.
“We are seeing Redden step into the middle a lot more in these opening three games and having a bigger effect,” Brereton said.
“The field kicking of Jetta is coming to the fore as well.
“You look at the boy Ryan, he is an undersized forward whose crumber size, but he goes for marks. He is like (Josh) Hill who was at the Eagles and had a bad last two seasons.
“He has literally taken his role, but he has got vibrancy about him, he has taken the odd hanger, he has kicked goals off the ground, he works hard in the forward line and he doesn’t mind laying a tackle.
“They got that vibrancy there with him, they got Redden going into the middle, they’ve got Naitanui coming back, and although he isn’t a massive possession getter, when he is at the ball, he forces the thing forward.
“They have a bit of pep in their step and they still got Josh Kennedy to come back.”
The Eagles will look to record another victory this Saturday night against Gold Coast.
Listen to Dermott Brereton’s chat with Rohan Connolly on SEN Afternoons in the player below