Craig O’Donoghue: West Coast Eagles have become a totally different football club in just over 12 months

Nothing sums up the change that is happening at West Coast more than the massive number of Eagles years that have departed the club since the end of the 2023 season. Not footy years. Not work years. But years of service at West Coast. When the Eagles paid tribute to departing recruiters Trevor Woodhouse, Stephen Nash and Neil Ross on Thursday, the total number of years of service from key footy people who have left since the end of the 2023 season soared past 300. That’s an extraordinary figure. West Coast was the most stable club in the league for most of its history. Between 1990-2023, the club had only four coaches and two chief executives. The club followed a clear model and rarely veered from that path. When you win flags in 1992, 1994, 2006 and 2018 while also playing in grand finals in 1991, 2005 and 2015, you can back yourself in. That’s especially the case when the club only missed the finals seven times in 31 seasons. The phrase “if you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got” is often used in negative connotations, but West Coast could always view it differently. And then the world changed. Ten wins and a ninth placed finish in 2021 wasn’t a disaster at the time, but it raised red flags. There was no doubt that 2022 was a disaster with only two wins but the club could still point to issues out of their control like COVID and injuries. They remained confident that the West Coast way would produce a successful 2023. When they won only three games and claimed the wooden spoon in 2023, even the most hardened West Coast people had doubts. And so it began. The removal of furniture. Furniture that had been there for a hell of a long time. Furniture that was so familiar, that there were few people who even recognised the room when it was no longer there. Sporting people can survive through differences of opinion. But the scoreboard doesn’t lie. As Chris Judd said after winning the 2006 flag, people could always debate the awards that he’d won because they were based on opinions — but grand final scoreboards are based on facts. Ross Lyon is big on saying that failure is feedback. West Coast got feedback that the West Coast way wasn’t working and it was time to try something new. Since the end of 2023, the Eagles have replaced their CEO, chairman, list boss, AFL coach, AFLW coach, WAFL coach, their captain and fitness boss. Throw in media manager, player services manager, assistant coaches, experienced players and recruiters, and you have a totally different club. The 300 years of service doesn’t include any player who didn’t spend at least 10 years on West Coast’s list. It doesn’t include people who have only been at the club for a short time. That’s 300 years worth of people who were senior figures in crucial jobs. Some have moved to other clubs or other footy positions and some have retired from working all together. That’s what happens when you’re in a job for more than 30 years. But regardless of the individual reasons, having so many pieces of furniture leaving in a such a short timeframe shows just how different the Eagles have become. The West Coast way is now a combination of ideas from a variety of clubs throughout the league. New coach Andrew McQualter is yet to coach a game but will be bringing ideas from his time at St Kilda, Gold Coast, Richmond and Melbourne. CEO Don Pyke won premierships at West Coast as a player but coached Adelaide, was an assistant coach in Sydney and has extensive experience in the business world. West Coast will have its first female chair on New Year’s Day when Elizabeth Gaines takes over from Paul Fitzpatrick. Gaines joined the Eagles board in 2022 so has only experienced the hard yards. She’ll be desperate to guarantee the off-field changes result in on-field change. Some furniture remains at West Coast. Names such as Tim Gepp, Richard Godfrey, Peter Staples and Gavin Bell have been at the club for a hell of a long time. There are other names and faces who wouldn’t be familiar to the general public who have also vast experience at the club. John Worsfold has also returned after more than a decade away from the club. But while everyone at the Eagles know who he is, most wouldn’t have worked with him before. Regardless of whether it is sport or business, changes like what has happened at West Coast puts everyone on edge. Players would be wondering if they’re in McQualter’s best 22. They have to prove themselves again. Staff would be wondering if Pyke sees them as an important part of the club’s future. Comfort levels would have changed a lot. New faces bring new ideas. The pre-match banner returned last season. We will all wait to see if there’s any changes to the song. But the reality is that changes weren’t made so we could see cosmetic differences. This is about re-building the team on the field. Expect the team to look different on the field. Expect the club to feel different. Expect change. Expect new ideas. After decades of doing it the Eagle way, expect the unexpected in 2025 as the new broom sweeps through.