Former West Coast player and assistant coach Peter Sumich has taken aim at his former club for retaining several veterans following the side’s bleak season.
Tipped by some to make a run at the finals, the Eagles capitulated in 2022 amid a spike in covid-19 cases, injuries and meagre onfield performances, which saw the side win just two games for the year.
While club legend Josh Kennedy retired at season’s end along with midfielder Jack Redden, Sumich said the club had been far too lenient in its list approach given the rebuild they are facing.
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“They’re calling it a rebuild but in my opinion, they’re not doing it the right way,” Sumich told The West Australian.
“I think they’ve got to bite the bullet with a few players if they’re calling it a proper rebuild.
“If you’re going to rebuild, you’ve got to make moves on players that have come to the end of their tether.
“It’s always a tough decision, by the club and by the player. That’s why I don’t think they’re in a rebuild.”
Given the demographic of the list, Sumich said the Eagles now needed to win “10 games minimum” in order to avoid “another failed year”.
Sumich said the number of premiership stars and established performers on the list demanded success for next season, unless coach Adam Simpson decided to “play the kids and really go for the jugular in the sense of rebuilding.”
Having won two premierships with the club as a player, Sumich served as an assistant coach at the Eagles between 2002 and 2011.
While he declined to specify the players he would offload, he hinted some were at the club during his tenure.
“I could be controversial but there’s a lot of them I know and I’ve coached at West Coast when they first came to the club, so it is tough for me to make that call,” he said.
“But I think everyone knows who they are.”
