Bruised Eagles gear for five-day AFL break
Apr 8, 2017 - 9:08 AM West Coast are bracing for their shortest break of the AFL season after a bruising loss to Richmond at the MCG.The Eagles went down to the Tigers by 11 points in stormy conditions on Saturday and will have just five days to recover before hosting Sydney on Thursday night.
It looms as a scheduling nightmare for West Coast after being hammered at the contests by a physical Richmond.
The Eagles avoided any major injuries during the 11.10 (76) to 8.17 (65) loss and coach Adam Simpson was quick to downplay any soreness, although he conceded it would be a tight turnaround.
"It's just footy," he said.
"They'll be sore but everyone's sore. We've got to get on with our recovery as quick as we can.
"We won't be able to train this week. We need to review the game pretty quickly and focus on Sydney, who'll come out breathing fire on Thursday."
The Eagles are likely to be tempted to rest 34-year-old Sam Mitchell for the clash against the winless Swans.
The former Hawthorn recruit was kept quiet in the second half against Richmond and has conceded he will need to manage his workload throughout the year.
"We'll have to have a look at how they pull up," Simpson said.
"The whole week will be based around how they pull up and how we manage that. They're coming off a six-day break. Both of us are going to be travelling so it'll be even.
"It's too early to tell. I must admit I didn't ask them how they were feeling after the game."
The Eagles were well-served by Luke Shuey, Andrew Gaff and Elliot Yeo against Richmond but could have done with more contributors.
Lewis Jetta (14 touches) struggled to handle the contested nature in his return from a glute complaint but Simpson suggested it would be unfair to single him out.
"I think a bit like our side, he started well, he missed a few opportunities to connect forward and when it really mattered most - like a lot of our players - there's some work to be done," he said.
"He's still working towards his best form. I think we've all seen it in the past and I think he'd be the first one to agree he's not quite there yet but I saw some good signs at stages today.
"As much as we'd like him to play his part around that contest, he's a finisher for us. He needs to go when it's his turn but I thought inside we got beaten."
Source: AAP
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