“Where are they now?”: King calls for Eagles critics to put their hand up

Will those who called for Adam Simpson to leave West Coast put their hand up and apologise? David King at the very least remains staunch in his support for the premiership coach.

The Eagles have shown signs that they are emerging from the depths, having won three games this year and just knocked off Melbourne.

King has been incredibly impressed with the club’s turnaround in 2024 and is confident in what West Coast is building.

“Every time the ball goes down back, try getting through Tom Barrass and Jeremy McGovern,” King told SEN Breakfast.

“A lot of people were calling for Adam Simpson’s head. People were calling this a wasted year – where are they now? Put your hand up high and say ‘I called for it’, because it couldn’t be further from reality.

“What Simpson has done with the strong support of those around him, Don Pyke and co, they’ve said ‘we know the plan’.

“Clearly Harley Reid is a major part of that, but he’s not the whole lot. I look at them and say they’re going to be hard to beat. They’re going to be hard to beat at home. They’re clearly winning more contest on the outside, they’re better with the ball now, they’re hard to beat at clearance. They’re an aggressive midfield now.

“Tim Kelly has worked so hard the last few years to be the man and now he’s got some support.

“I love what they’ve been able to do on the run. I think when you’ve got this kid doing what he’s doing you can go to the West Australians at other clubs and say ‘we’re about to go on this journey and this kid is about to be the biggest thing in the game. Do you want to be part of this ride’.

“How good is that for the competition? It’ll be so much easier for them to get free agents now than it was eight weeks ago.”

Reid put together his second best on ground performance in a West Coast win on the weekend, kicking two miraculous goals against the Dees.

King believes the Eagles deserve credit for managing the star teenager in the midst of some incredible external hype.

“They’re shaping this young man perfectly. He’s handling the attention of an entire state really well. A lot of club support would go into that,” he said.

“And for him to deliver like this is just remarkable. You watch the game and he’s looking for contact. He’s actually running at people now. It’s awesome to watch.

“He’s the only player I’ve seen who wants to go from inside traffic, to outside and then to go back in to cause more trauma on the way out.

“I think he pays with a passion and a hunger and it’s lifted the bar at West Coast. It’s made those around him think ‘geez, if that’s how we have to attack the game, I’ve got to come with it’.”