West Coast interim coach Jarrad Schofield is hopeful the club's impressive performance on Sunday, albeit in a loss to Brisbane, won't be an anomaly as the Eagles continue to manoeuvre through life after Adam Simpson.
Schofield took charge of the Perth club for its first game since Simpson's departure after 11 years at the helm, with the Eagles remaining in the contest against last year's grand finalists until the end.
The Queenslanders were 13-point victors at Optus Stadium, with the Lions expecting a hardened West Coast outfit given the events leading up to the match.
In Schofield's eyes, the caretaker coach said he hopes the improved performance is a step towards what the struggling side can show in the final rounds of the season and not a one-off outing given the circumstances.
"We didn't win today. We performed well but we didn't get the win. So there's a reality to that," Schofield said after the match.
"We've got to make sure we recover well. We understand it was a good performance, our identity was there and we were positive about it, but we've got to make sure we back it up.
"We've got to do that by how we recover and how we present on the training track. We'll monitor what we do, but our biggest challenge is that we back up that performance."
The Eagles found some positives from a handful of players who came into the Round 18 side, with Zane Trew impressing in his first full game of 2024 while Ryan Maric and Luke Edwards were also helpful in their returns.
Schofield made a quartet of changes for his first game in charge, dropping three players - including veteran Jack Darling - while losing defender Jeremy McGovern to injury.
Further changes could come for this weekend's trip to Melbourne to face St Kilda, with the Eagles' reserves claiming a win in the WAFL thanks to some prominent performances from the club's AFL-listed figures.
Jai Culley, Clay Hall and Dom Sheed were among the top Eagles players to feature in the win over West Perth and could come back into the selection mix.
Schofield said it was a promising weekend of performances, with form remaining the priority at selection instead of looking to experiment in the home stretch.
"Like all weeks, we'll give opportunities to players if they perform," Schofield added.
"Yes we are in an exploration period where we want to see what they can bring, but we're not here to hand out games. There's got to be a balance.
"We're really positive and encouraging to the players, and they're pretty clear in what they need to get done. When you win a WAFL game, there's going to be some good performances.
"At selection, we'll reward players for form, but we're not going to hand out games. That just builds a strong foundation when it comes to selection."
The Eagles could be forced into two changes for Round 19, with co-captain Liam Duggan to enter the AFL's concussion protocols while forward Tyler Brockman could not finish the game due to a suspected ankle injury.
West Coast head to Marvel Stadium on Saturday to face St Kilda, with a Round 20 Derby to follow the following weekend.
