Time for Eagles to get hungry for success again following Simpson sacking

Which made Adam Simpson's departure from West Coast on Tuesday seem very tame in comparison.

A conversation between club chief executive Don Pyke and Simpson on Monday night preceded a board meeting the following morning, and the coach's departure was announced publicly immediately, a press conference held shortly after.

The only bone of contention was whether Simpson would coach a farewell game at the weekend, but beyond that it was plaudits and kind words all round, and a palpable sense of relief even on the part of the guy who'd just lost his job.

Why?

Because this was a decision which has been coming for a while.

In truth, it was a call which should have been made at the end of last season after a second year of appalling on-field results, and which by year's end left the Eagles having won a paltry five of their previous 45 games.

Not for the first time, West Coast chose the status quo, with very little impact on the bottom line, last Sunday's nine-goal belting at the hands of Melbourne a 13th defeat from 16 games in 2024, seven of those losses by 50 points or more.

So accustomed have the Eagles become to floggings over the past few years, particularly on the road, that when I entered their dressing rooms at the MCG after the Melbourne loss on Sunday, I was struck by how upbeat the place seemed.

I'm not one for overreactions, but it did seem surprisingly accepting of what was at best another limp effort, the game effectively decided by quarter time after Melbourne had slammed on seven goals to just one and West Coast players already trailed their opponents all over the ground.

But perhaps that resignation and acceptance was quite appropriate symbolically.

For it has felt for quite a while like both coach and club were doing the same thing.

You hope that the last few seasons don't play too great a role in determining whether another AFL club is keen on Simpson's coaching services, once he's had a decent break even he admits he desperately needs.

Because what he achieved over the first half of his coaching tenure in Perth is significant.

Simpson is the third West Coast premiership coach, and that five-point grand final triumph over Collingwood in 2018 ranks as one of the great grand final victories.

But he also got the Eagles to a (losing) grand final in only his second season in charge in 2015, led them to finals campaigns six years in a row, and at the end of 2020, had a very impressive win-loss strike rate of 65 per cent from 160 games.

Did he and the club get too complacent with that position, allowing too many veterans to play on when their returns and certainly their durability was highly questionable?

Perhaps, though there's little doubt the Covid years took a greater toll on West Coast not just logistically, but in terms of mental and physical health, than probably all of its rivals.

And Simpson would hardly be the first premiership coach to feel a sense of obligation to the players who'd brought him the ultimate success.

Nor is West Coast the first club to rest on its laurels too long after winning a flag, failing to be bold enough with list management or recruiting.

That in itself is one of the finest lines in football to tread, and sometimes even when it's executed well, natural attrition and the equalisation system catches up with the best.

That said, West Coast's complacency as a club arguably has its roots in not only its highly successful history but by its very circumstances.

The original Western Australian national competition entrant, eight years ahead of Fremantle, the Eagles have so much support and resources at times it appears they don't know what to do with it all.

Even performances on the field as dire as those delivered over the last few seasons haven't affected the bottom line.

In short, the Eagles don't even have to be much good on the field these days to continue to thrive off it.

That can't be great for the motivation levels of all concerned, be it players, coaches, officials or board members.

If West Coast the club learns anything out of these dismal last few seasons, it's that you don't get to enjoy the fruits of success for too long at all in AFL football before you're in danger of being overtaken by hungrier rivals.

And that's what the Eagles must themselves become now, regardless of whether it's Dean Cox, Jaymie Graham, Ashley Hansen or conversely, another non-local, like Simpson was, assuming the coaching reins.

And Simpson?

As well as being one of the genuinely nicest people in AFL football, he's also one of the smartest.

It's hard not to see him being back at the coaching coalface again sooner than later, whether that's in another senior position, say with the new Tasmanian team, or even as an assistant.

AFL coaching is a relentlessly demanding and unforgiving job.

But Simpson has already proved he's good at it. I've not much doubt he'll get another chance to do so.