West Coast coach Andrew McQualter has confirmed that co-captain Oscar Allen will return to face Hawthorn on Sunday.
Amid the scrutiny Allen received for exploring the free agency market and subsequent meeting with Hawks coach Sam Mitchell, the Eagles opted to manage his load during Round 6, with his troublesome knee providing a moment of worry.
West Coast had three games in 13 days between Rounds 3 and 5, and the opportunity to rest their skipper against Essendon appeared to helpful to miss.
But heading east to Marvel Stadium to face Hawthorn, Allen will line up alongside fellow forward Jake Waterman.
"Oscar is good, he's going to play this week," McQualter said.
"We gave him a few days off last week, and he's in a good space. He's been good around the club this week, and he is good to go."
The Eagles coaching group will hope the spirited performance against the Bombers, which almost yielded their first victory of 2025, can be used as inspiration this week.
The Hawks pose as a much bigger challenge, but after a blistering opening month of the campaign, they've fallen in consecutive weeks, losing to Port Adelaide and Geelong.
"Every team you can find gaps in their game, look, they've played two strong sides in the last week," McQualter said.
"I won't go into exactly what we have, but we have plans and areas we are looking to exploit."
Key defender Callum Jamieson will also return to football after 10 months on the sidelines, successfully rehabilitating his knee and ankle injuries he sustained in 2024.
McQualter confirmed that Jamieson will play in the WAFL this weekend.
