AFL Watch: Elijah Hewett, Bailey Williams, Tyrell Dewar impressive for West Coast against Perth in WAFL

West Coast fielded 13 AFL-listed players in their WAFL season opener, a 65-point defeat to Perth at Mineral Resources Park on Saturday. Here’s the Eagles who impressed. Harry Barnett: Backed up Bailey Williams in the ruck while spending the rest of the game as a deep forward but did not have much influence in either role. Rhett Bazzo: Left exposed by the Eagles’ inability to establish field position. Did hold his own when opposed to Perth spearhead Aaron Clarke and claimed a couple of nice intercept marks. Tyrell Dewar: Worked hard on the wing to provide his side with an outlet coming out of defence. Went into quarter-time with nine disposals and finished with 25. Lucca Grego: Looked to have been given a licence to be aggressive with his ball use from defence. Hit some difficult kicks into the corridor, but also had some costly turnovers. Tom Gross: Solid in his first competitive hit-out for the season after overcoming a hamstring injury. Found plenty of the ball early before spending a decent chunk of the second half on the bench due to a troublesome cut on his face. Clay Hall: Notched a team-high 26 disposals and laid five tackles. Spent the entirety of his day as an on-baller, rather than the wing role he was being primed for in pre-season. Elijah Hewett: His numbers of 14 disposals and one goal did not jump off the stat sheet but he showcased glimpses of his dynamic best. Looked to get through the game unscathed, though he did not cover the ground with any real verve in the closing stages. Harvey Johnston: Split his time between half-forward and the wing. Slotted a classy goal under pressure to go with two behinds. Finlay Macrae: Struggled to get involved in the game amid his side’s slow start. Found his share of the ball late to finish with 20 disposals. Ryan Maric: Was neat and composed with his ball use and played his part when called upon defensively. Bailey Williams: Took the points in a battle against Perth’s tag-team of ruckmen, winning 34 hit-outs. Also added two goals — including a long bomb as the three-quarter-time siren sounded — on a productive day. Jack Williams: Kicked a nice early goal from beyond the 50-metre arc. Was swung behind the ball during the Demons’ second-term blitz and looked comfortable in the role. Tylah Williams: Got out the back to roll home his first goal in Eagles colours in the opening quarter. Worked up the ground as a half-forward.