Eagles skipper Oscar Allen finds his happy place
Allen produced his best game of the season by kicking 4.0 in Sunday's 43-point loss to Geelong at Optus Stadium.
The 26-year-old kicked two goals in the second quarter and handed off another to help his team fight back from 29 points down.
West Coast closed to within six points early in the last quarter before Geelong piled on seven of the final eight goals of the match to run away with the 17.14 (116) to 11.7 (73) win.
Allen kicked 53 goals in 2023 to announce himself as one of the best key forwards in the competition.
But he was so out of form earlier this year that he was moved into West Coast's defence for games against Hawthorn and Melbourne.
Allen contributed strongly in those matches, and he expressed his desire to play wherever the team needed him most.
But the glint in his eyes was evident when he returned to attack in round 10 against St Kilda.
Allen kicked two goals in the upset win over St Kilda and followed it up with two goals against Adelaide.
Allen snaps a fourth and the Eagles are sticking with the Cats 👀#AFLEaglesCats pic.twitter.com/oJBMRiZKwY
— AFL (@AFL) June 1, 2025
Jake Waterman's season-ending shoulder injury meant it was up to Allen to lead the team's attack against Geelong, and he stood up in grand style.
"Look, we know how good a forward he is, but like I say always - the team will always come first for all of our players," West Coast coach Andrew McQualter said.
"So Oscar having that flexibility is a bonus. We shouldn't look it as a as a negative thing.
"It's a good thing for our team that he can play both ends of the ground, but he might have earned himself another week in the forward line."
With All-Australian Waterman out of action for the rest of the year, you can bet your bottom dollar Allen will stay in attack to help the likes of Archer Reid and Jack Williams continue their development.
"Archer and Jack are young. They're competing really hard, and they're getting some looks, but I think Oscar's experience there makes a big difference," McQualter said.
Harley Reid tallied 19 disposals, seven clearances and a goal against Geelong despite being heavily tagged by Oisin Mullin.
"I think he really had an impact on the game," McQualter said.
"(Under a) heavy tag, from the outset, he worked his way into the game and had some really pivotal moments.
"He's not going to have massive amount of touches when you get heavy tag like that, but he had some great moments that helped our team, for sure."
West Coast (1-11) will be back in action on Sunday when they take on North Melbourne (2-1-8) in a bottom-of-the-table clash in Bunbury.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
26 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Important defender sidelined for Crows' top-two push
Important Adelaide defender Max Michalanney will be sidelined for at least the rest of the AFL home and away season with a hamstring injury. Michalanney, a crucial part of Adelaide's backline, was substituted with the injury in the third quarter of Saturday night's thumping win over Port Adelaide and will miss four-to-six weeks. It means the Crows will continue their push for a top-two berth without the versatile defender, who will need to prove his fitness for finals. "It's unfortunate for Max given the season he's been having," Crows high performance boss Darren Burgess said. "Thankfully for us, we know he's an extremely diligent worker and will do everything possible to return stronger." View this post on Instagram A post shared by Adelaide Crows (@adelaide_fc) Michalanney, 21, had played 64 of a possible 65 games since his debut in 2023. Adelaide will miss Michalanney against Hawthorn's dynamic forward line on Friday night, while he will also be sidelined for games against West Coast, Collingwood and North Melbourne. The Crows (56 points), sit second behind Collingwood (60) and just ahead of Brisbane (54). Geelong, Hawthorn, GWS and Fremantle (all 52 points) are all jostling for top-four berths.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Taylor's fighting talk inspires tourists
Jack Conan has revealed that a video message from Irish boxing legend Katie Taylor helped inspire the Lions' memorable comeback in their series-clinching victory over Australia. Olympic gold medallist and undisputed world super lightweight champion Taylor urged the touring party to dig deep in a good luck message before the second Test in Melbourne. The Lions took heed of Taylor's encouragement after overturning an 18-point deficit to win 29-26. "The video was unbelievably poignant and powerful. It spoke about being prepared to win with skill, but also being ready to win by will," said Ireland number eight Conan. "That was something that was massively summed up in the game because we were not at our best at all. "It's huge because she comes from the town I'm from. I'm incredibly proud of where I come from and I know Katie is as well. "She's gone on to achieve incredible feats in the boxing world. To be such a superstar, incredibly humble and driven is something that we leant on as well because we knew that Australia are a hugely proud nation and they showed it in spades. "Everyone loved it, even the English and the Scottish boys and the Welsh boy - it resonated with everyone. It was unbelievably poignant, it was class. It really hit home for us." Listen: Sport's Strangest Crimes - Bloodgate Listen to the latest Rugby Union Weekly podcast
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Brutal call made on Broncos' hopes after premiership blow at hands of Panthers
NRL great Greg Alexander has called out the Brisbane Broncos and questioned if they have enough in them to win the NRL title after a shock defeat to the Parramatta Eels on Friday night. The Broncos headed into the clash against the Eels as heavy favourites after steadying their top eight hopes with five straight wins. However, Michael Maguire was left deflated after the 22-20 defeat at home to Parramatta with the Broncos once again folding when the pressure was piled on them. Reece Walsh had a rocks and diamonds game with errors mixed in with flashes of brilliance. Although Broncos great Corey Parker defended Walsh and claimed veterans Adam Reynolds and hooker Ben Hunt didn't stand up on Friday night. While Payne Haas appeared to finish the game struggling with a reoccurring back injury. The Broncos slipped to sixth on the ladder, but are only two points ahead of the Manly Sea Eagles in ninth. Maguire's men have been accused of lacking grunt in 2025 and they were once again called out after their latest display. And NRL commentator Andrew Voss claimed the team lacks the resilience to finish in the top four. 'I have not hopped on the Brisbane Broncos bus at all this year,' Voss said on Monday morning on SEN Radio. 'I still think they are absolutely capable of torching sides between now and at the end of the season. 'However, it's not consistent and I don't see any resilience. I do not see the top four toughness. I see them as pretenders." And Penrith legend Alexander claimed the team are prone to errors and capitulations once the game gets tough. He also questioned if their five-game winning streak was inflated because they beat the Titans twice. 'They are fair weather,' Alexander said. 'On their day, they can beat anyone. They were looking to make it their sixth win in a row and the Gold Coast Titans were two of those wins. The Eels exposed the frailty of this Brisbane side. They don't like it when sides get down and dirty. They don't like sides who play boring and relentless footy and that's what Mitch Moses did (for Parramatta). 'The Broncos couldn't handle it and once the scores got close, the errors and inability to get down into the grind exposed Brisbane. I'm with you (Voss). They are a fair weather team who (only likes) to play in front.' The Broncos are contending with a surging Penrith Panthers side who have moved from last on the ladder to fifth. The Panthers now sit one point ahead of the Broncos with Nathan Cleary leading his side to a 36-2 win over the Wests Tigers on the weekend to mark their seventh straight victory. The Broncos still have to play the Storm twice before the end of the season. RELATED: Stunning development for Cleary brothers as Luai under heavy fire Cameron Munster 'open' to switch to Melbourne Storm's rival Corey Parker defends Reece Walsh after loss Walsh came under scrutiny for his game, despite coming close to winning it for his side at the end only to be called offside. Walsh tried his heart out, but came up with a number of errors. Although former Broncos forward Parker was more critical of the veterans in the team who failed to outperform their counterparts. "There are moments in any sport when you need leadership," the Broncos legend said on SEN radio on Monday. "There comes a time when your most experienced players and your leaders have to stand up and make some bold calls, and they have to stay on task. "The Broncos have got Adam Reynolds at 35 years of age and over 300 games of experience. He's the No.7. He's what you would think is the leader of the football side. He's the captain, and he plays a real pivotal position. "Then you've got Ben Hunt at No.9 with just shy of 350 games. So between those two individuals you've got a collective 651 games between them. We hear so often when the Broncos win or don't win, it's either Reece Walsh has had an ordinary game or Reece Walsh has had a great game. [But] experience in big games and pivotal moments is paramount."
