Eagles’ Kennedy to declare himself fit for round one

West Coast coach Adam Simpson expects Josh Kennedy to declare himself ready to go for round one.

However, the call on whether the veteran goal-scorer lines up against Brisbane will be determined by his recovery from the Eagles’ intra-club game this Friday.

Simpson told AFL.com.au that the club was conscious of the 31-year-old’s injury history and were averse to rushing the dual Coleman Medallist back.

“He’s ready to play, it’s just will he get through today and then medically he’ll be fine,” Simpson said prior to the intra-club.

“Then it will be a decision if he’s done enough to get through a season.

“Last year we played him (in round four) and he got through, but then he broke his leg and missed seven weeks.

“He’s pretty resilient, we’ve just got to keep an eye on how he pulls up and make a decision next week.

“I can’t say (if) we’re going to play him or not.”

Simpson confirmed defender Brad Sheppard (corked knee) and forward Jamie Cripps (toe) would also take part in the intra-club match.

Sheppard injured his knee in West Coast’s JLT2 victory over Fremantle, while Cripps did not feature at all in the Eagles’ JLT Series.

The Eagles face the Lions at the Gabba on Saturday night on 23^rd March.