AFL boss Andrew Dillon has defended the league’s decision to hand West Coast a special assistance package, saying the club’s prolonged struggles meant supporters needed something to believe in again.
Speaking in Perth following an AFL Commission meeting, Dillon addressed the criticism surrounding the move, which granted the Eagles an end-of-first-round draft pick and four additional rookie list spots between 2026 and 2028.
“Fans can lose hope if you sit down at the bottom too long”
The AFL’s rare intervention came after a dire four-year stretch in which West Coast finished second last, last, third last, and last, managing just 11 wins since 2022. Rival supporters questioned why a club that lifted the premiership trophy in 2018 deserved such assistance, but Dillon insisted it was about restoring optimism in a proud football state.
“I think what you want, what we want as a competition, is for all our fans of all of our clubs to have hope,” Dillon said, as reported by The West Australian. “And I think if you sit down at the bottom for too long, fans can lose hope.”
He praised the new leadership group, CEO Don Pyke, chair Elizabeth Gaines, and coach Andrew McQualter, for steering the club through its rebuild. “They’ve taken that package and they’ve used that,” he said. “They’ve attracted a high calibre player and they’ve got two early picks in the draft … with Harley Reid as well, they are going to be OK.”
The Eagles, who also secured pick No. 2 as compensation for Oscar Allen’s free agency move to Brisbane, will enter next month’s draft armed with three first-round selections.