West Coast’s finals hopes are almost dead and buried after suffering a 34-point loss to Sydney in Sunday’s AFL clash at Patersons Stadium.
Sydney unleashed a midfield master class to secure the 17.11 (113) to 11.13 (79) triumph, moving the defending premiers within two competition points of second spot.
In contrast, West Coast are now two wins adrift of eighth place and highly unlikely to reach the finals.
Although the Eagles will start favourites against the Bulldogs (away) and Gold Coast over the next fortnight, they must produce huge upsets in order to beat the likes of Essendon (away), Geelong and Collingwood (MCG) in the run home.
Sydney are now a game clear inside the top-four ahead of Sunday’s clash with a resurgent Richmond at the SCG.
In a further blow for West Coast, star midfielder Luke Shuey was subbed off at half-time after suffering a hamstring injury.
The Swans dominated the midfield battle, with Daniel Hannebery (40 possessions, two goals), Kieren Jack (30 possessions, two goals) and Josh Kennedy (29 possessions, one goal) all starring.
Such was Sydney’s dominance, they led the inside-50m count 43-20 at three-quarter time, with their 37-point lead at the final change proving too much to run down for the Eagles.
West Coast skipper Darren Glass was a rock in the heart of defence, but the Eagles struggled to create many clear-cut opportunities for their star-studded forward line.
Sydney’s sublime skills in close at the stoppages proved the difference, allowing them to win the crucial clearance battle and set up wave after wave of attacks.
Hannebery and Kennedy had 24 possessions and two goals between them in the opening term as the Swans took a six-point lead into the first break.
But it was the second quarter where Sydney inflicted the most damage, with the Swans’ finesse in the frenetic stoppage battle proving critical
Shuey, who had missed three games with a hamstring tear, seemed to aggravate the injury in the second term, robbing West Coast of one of their best midfielders.
Former Demon Cale Morton finished with 16 possessions and one goal in a promising performance after replacing Shuey for the start of the third quarter.
The margin stretched to 43 points early in the final quarter when Swans ruckman Shane Mumford kicked truly, but West Coast finally found some momentum to cut the deficit to 22 with 12 minutes remaining.
However, a steadying goal from Hannebery and Kurt Tippett’s third goal ensured Sydney would record their seventh straight win over West Coast.