‘Put my hand up': McQualter opens up on sub regret
The 19-year-old, who was taken with the club's top draft pick last year, replaced emerging key forward Archer Reid in the dying stages of the 10-point defeat in Bunbury.
But there was little he could contribute as his flagging teammates struggled to win the ball, the Kangaroos dominating the clearances 14-2 in the final term to claw back a three-goal deficit.
McQualter said wrapping his head around how to utilise the sub position had been difficult in his first year as the Eagles head coach and added he needed to support Allan better going forward.
'I have to put my hand up. I haven't handled Bo and the sub particularly well in the last few weeks,' he told 7NEWS.
'I think it's still something I'm learning in my job. So, we need to support Bo a bit better, particularly being a young player.
'Putting him on the field with a couple of minutes to go is a little unfair, so we'll work our way through that.
'I find (the sub role) really challenging, particularly when the game's in the balance like that. You're weary of bringing somebody on the field off unless they're injured.
'It's an ongoing challenge, but you've got to look at it and try and find a way to make it an advantage.'
Despite confirming the rookie was unlikely to be saddled with the vest on Sunday against Carlton, McQualter wouldn't confirm if Allan would remain in the senior team or drop back to WAFL level.
'I can 98 per cent guarantee that he won't be sub this week; I wouldn't do that to him three weeks in a row,' he said.
'We'll see which level he plays at, though.'
Allan has had an interrupted season after dual illnesses wrecked hopes of an early-season debut before the youngster copped a suspension when he finally did earn his maiden appearance in round nine against Melbourne as the club's 300th player.
Despite giving up five of the last six goals of the game to throw away another winnable position, McQualter was full of praise for his defenders, who held spearhead Nick Larkey and Jack Darling goalless, even going as far as to say Harry Edwards had played the best game of his career to date.
'I thought it was one of Harry's best games he's played for our footy club,' he said. Andrew McQualter, Senior Coach of the Eagles addresses the players at the break during the 2025 AFL Round 13 match between the North Melbourne Kangaroos v West Coast Eagles at Hands Oval on June 8, 2025 in Bunbury, Australia. (Photo by Daniel Carson/AFL Photos) Credit: Daniel Carson / AFL Photos
'I thought all of our defenders didn't defend particularly well in quarter one, but we gave them some really strong feedback at quarter time, and Harry led the way after that.
'I think he had 13 intercept possessions and kept Nick Larkey goalless, which is a great effort. So, really good signs for him.'
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