West Coast forward Jack Darling booted five first-half goals and Nic Naitanui made a successful return from injury as the Eagles posted a 70-point victory over the Western Bulldogs in Sunday’s AFL clash at Patersons Stadium.
Darling’s first-half heroics set up the 21.11 (137) to 10.7 (67) win, while Naitanui was dominant in the ruck after coming on midway through the third quarter.
Former Magpie Sharrod Wellingham (26 possessions) was also impressive in his Eagles debut, while Josh Kennedy and Dean Cox finished with four goals each after Darling failed to add to his own tally in the second half.
Midfielder Luke Shuey also starred, but injured his ankle in the final quarter.
The hype before the match surrounded the highly-anticipated return of Naitanui from his lingering groin injury.
But fans had to wait until 14 minutes into the third quarter before Naitanui took off the sub’s vest and made his way onto the field.
The 23-year-old only tallied five possessions for the match, but he was influential in the ruck with 17 hit-outs as West Coast powered to their second win of the season.
The victory lifted West Coast up to equal 10th on the table, while the Bulldogs’ fifth loss on the trot left them mired near the foot of the table.
Adam Cooney, Clay Smith, ruckman Will Minson and Matthew Boyd battled valiantly for the Bulldogs, while Mark Austin managed to keep Darling goalless after half-time.
West Coast entered the match having kicked 17.42 in losses to Carlton and Port Adelaide over the previous fortnight.
But they showed no signs of nerves in front of goals during the first quarter, with Cox converting a beautiful set shot from the boundary, Shuey nailing a tricky set shot and Chris Masten kicking truly from outside 50m.
The Bulldogs were racking up big numbers in the midfield, but West Coast were dominating play at either end of the ground.
Darren Glass, Eric Mackenzie, Shannon Hurn and Mitch Brown were relentless in defence, while Darling exploded in attack, with opponents Tom Young and Dale Morris unable to halt his influence.
The Bulldogs did have one memorable highlight for the half, with Jake Stringer dribbling home a beautiful goal from the boundary line.
Darling’s dominance was halted by Austin after half-time, but the Eagles’ charge continued, with Cox, Kennedy and Mark LeCras prolific.