Harley Reid has continued his stunning form as West Coast produced one of the great western derby upsets with a 37-point AFL win over Fremantle at Optus Stadium.
The Eagles copped a 101-point hiding at the hands of the Dockers in round 22 last year, but the reigning wooden-spooners turned the tables on Saturday night in stunning fashion as they raced out to a 46-3 lead.
Fremantle were out of sorts throughout, with West Coast extending their lead to 64 points by three-quarter-time before easing to a 16.9 (105) to 10.8 (68) win in front of 54,473 fans.
Elliot Yeo won the Glendinning-Allan Medal after tallying 26 possessions and six clearances.
But it was Reid's name the crowd chanted during the match following his inspiring display.
HARLEY REID DOES IT AGAIN#AFLEaglesFreo pic.twitter.com/kOyhxlVX26
— AFL (@AFL) April 20, 2024
Reid's huge pack mark in the third quarter sent the supporters wild, and his two-goal spurt late in the first term proved crucial in helping West Coast build momentum.
The 19-year-old finished with three goals, 19 possessions and seven clearances to only narrowly miss out on the best-on-ground plaudits.
"I can't be any happier," Reid told Foxtel after the match.
"We tried to build off last week with our momentum. Today our first half was pretty extraordinary.
"To take the win is pretty cool."
Tom Barrass and Jeremy McGovern marshalled the defence, while Jake Waterman followed up his six goals against Richmond with another five majors.
For the Dockers, ruckman Sean Darcy (30 hitouts) showed good signs in his return from a knee injury, while Nat Fyfe tallied 13 clearances and 27 disposals.
The result snapped Fremantle's five-match derby winning streak, and extended West Coast's overall head-to-head advantage to 33-25.
Fremantle suffered a huge blow five minutes in when Jye Amiss was concussed after copping an accidental knee to the head from Jeremy McGovern.
It means Amiss will miss next week's home clash with the Western Bulldogs.
West Coast defender Barrass faces a nervous wait to see if his final quarter sling tackle on Michael Walters - in which he pinned his opponent's arm before slamming him to the turf - will draw a suspension.
Michael Walters was awarded a free kick after this tackle from Tom Barrass. #AFLEaglesFreo pic.twitter.com/AdLPYsG8M5
— AFL (@AFL) April 20, 2024
Fremantle won the inside 50m count 16-7 in the opening quarter, but West Coast entered the first break with a 25-3 advantage on the scoreboard courtesy of some late heroics from Reid.
Reid didn't touch the ball for the first 23 minutes of the match, but when he did he kicked two goals and set up another in the blink of an eye.
It took until the 15-minute mark of the second quarter for Fremantle to register their first goal of the match, via Luke Jackson.
The Dockers kicked another two for the term, but Waterman's third and fourth goals ensured West Coast still had a commanding 37-point lead at halftime.
Reid tallied eight disposals, three clearances and a goal in the third term to ram home West Coast's advantage, with his pack mark in attack the highlight of the quarter.
"Probably from the 20-minute mark in the first quarter for about two-and-a-half quarters, we got smoked in the contest," Fremantle coach Justin Longmuir said.
"Behind the ball they were able to have contests or win contests. And in front of the ball they just smoked us."
Jack Darling's two majors moved him level with Peter Sumich (514) in second place for the most goals kicked at West Coast.
