The Soaring

1989 National Draft

The number 1 all-time best Eagles draft is the 1989 National Draft. (For drafts as I’ve ranked them - No.2, No.3, No. 4, No.5 all time best Eagles drafts).

Nineteen eighty nine is for some reason an unpopular year. The end of the strange 1980s, but not yet the 1990s. But for the West Coast Eagles the end of 1989 saw a changing of the guard with new coach Michael Malthouse coming on board to resurrect the flagging fortunes of the fledgling club after a dismal season. The 1989 Draft will be looked back on as a key milestone in turning the club around from fading star to the assembling of the all-conquering, premiership sides of the 1990s.

#4 Peter Matera
#50 Dean Irving
#64 Tony Evans
#78 Steven Schwerdt
#92 Brett Heady
#112 Ashley McIntosh

Peter Matera
Before Chris Judd there was Peter Matera. By anyone’s measure Peter Matera was a true champion of the AFL, displaying qualities of brilliance, exceptional skill and determination throughout his 253 game career with the Eagles. Like all great players Matera blazed a trail for a new type of player - in his case a player blessed with exceptional pace, poise and athletic brilliance, not to mention his trademark game breaking ability. It’s these qualities 15 plus years later recruiters want to secure at the top of every draft.

Early draft picks are good, but you still need to translate them into a quality player. And that undisputedly what Peter Matera was. Trevor Nisbett, now CEO then Football Manager, recounts the 1989 draft:

“He was a young, skinny kid who could run like the wind and had fantastic skills – I think that was everyone’s first impression,” he said.

“He played some wonderful footy at South Fremantle – he played state footy, and I guess our first indication was that he was always going to be a good player.”

The story of the draft that year is enough to make followers of some opposition clubs, particularly Richmond fans, weep.

“It was a draft system in ’89 - there was a restriction that each other club was only allowed one player out of WA and the first three clubs picked … Richmond took Anthony Banik, Footscray picked Matthew Croft, and St. Kilda picked Jody Arnol.

“We were the next pick, so we picked Peter, and as the draft is, some worked out and some don’t – a couple of those worked out, and a couple didn’t.”

He announced his superstar status with 5 goals from the wing in the Eagles first premiership in 1992, taking the Norm Smith medal in the process. Although he did not win a Brownlow medal he can be considered to be desparately unlucky not to. Runner-up to Greg Williams in 1994 with 28 votes and then again 1997, Matera won 126 Brownlow votes over his career to be the stand out, offensive midfielder in Malthouse’s defensive minded hard nosed units of the nineties.

It could well be argued the selection of Peter Matera with the 4th selection in the 89 draft, along with the 2001 selection of Judd to be one of the two most important selections in the history of the club. The iconic Matera was the sort of player people went to the footy to watch.

If Peter Matera was the prototype for the new generation player, Dean Irving was the prototypical player from a past generation. A monlith of a man, Dean Irving played in the Eagles’ 1991 Grand Final loss but struggled for game time behind Paul Harding in years after that. Was traded to Melbourne where he played some decent footy but eventually played out his career in the WAFL.

Ruckmen are always a gamble in the drafting process. You never need more than two in a given 22, but if you get a couple of injuries and you don’t have depth at that position, it is hard to convert another player into a competant back-up. Ultimately, for pick 50, Irving was a handy player and a solid pick.

Tony Evans is a name not given many plaudits beyond the realms of West Coast Eagles fandom, but amongst Eagles’ supporters the respect for this man is huge. A courageous, in and under rover with a penchant for a timely goal Tony Evans was the consumate team player with a heart that belied his small stature. He was a player who blossomed under Malthouse and was moulded into a big game player like the man named at the top of this list.

“Barney” Evans played a huge game in the 1992 Grand Final, his two goals before half-time lifting the spirits of his team and its supporters as they marched towards their historic first premiership. From a drafting perspective, it was not expected that a number #64 draft pick would play such a vital role in the Eagles juggernaut of the early 90s, but Tony Evans career will be remembered as a player who defied expectation to reach great heights.

Steven Schwerdt was taken at pick 78 from the SANFL competition but never ventured to Perth to take up a spot on the list. He continued a fine career in Adelaide and is now the current fitness coach of the Camry Crows.

Brett Heady like Matera and Evans is fondly remembered in Eagles folklore for his heroic feats in the defining period of the club, the 1990s. A truly inspirational player, Heady was the half forward every team wants. He had the ability to dominate a game with a bag of goals, or when things weren’t going so well he could just as easily show his value by throwing his body on the line for the sake of teammates, often to his own detriment.

Heady was a true Eagle. He rose to the occasion in the big games, he was tough, disciplined and highly skilled, he extracted the most out of himself as a player, he was a winner and he had a history of bitchifying the Dockers. Heady’s stereotypical highlight package would include pictures of him throwing himself into oncoming packs, taking a spectacular mark and goaling. But one decidedly untypical defining moment came in the 1992 Grand Final when he was thrown into the centre. It was there in an unfamiliar role Heady racked up numerous possessions, tagged Brownlow medallist Paul Couch out of the game, and drove the team onto victory. Heady was a half forward, but there was nothing fluky or one dimensional about his game. For pick 92 in this draft he proved to be a ridiculous bargain.

If Brett Heady was a ridiculous bargain, Ashley McIntosh must have just about been an absolute gift. Pick 112 was used to secure the athletic and strong key position prospect who was at that time still a student at Perth’s Scotch College, but who later become on the premier full backs in the league.

Another player who was under-recognised throughout his 242 game career McIntosh was a one-time All Australian and one-time club champion, but consistently battled, and beat, some of the games finest key forwards. Ablett, Dunstall, Lockett, Lloyd were all touched up by the McIntosh combination of strength, speed and resolute determination.

Also a dangerous pinch-hitting forward an ongoing knee complaint hampered McIntosh playing in the forward line for long periods. However, this injury simply served to underscore his incredible ability to compete week in and out against the league best and so of the all time greats. His stability and ability to beat his opponent was ultimately on of the great building blocks of the Eagles 90s success. Along with the like of Brenna, Jakovich, McKenna, Hart and Worsfold, McIntosh formed part of the greatest defensive unit in the Eagles and arguably the leagues history. He along, with Matera and Heady will be remembered as an all-time Ealges great.

Summary: One pick below selection 50 and yet 4 premiership stars were selected, which has to make this an truly incredible draft. In addition to the names here the Eagles were also able to take 3 additional selections and 2 pre-draft selections that aren’t considered here but produced another two premiership players (Kemp and Turnbull) and an AFL club captain (Peter Mann). Matera, Heady and McIntosh were all amongst the leagues best during their careers and will be viewed as all-time greats of the club. To select all three (and to get them at 4, 92 and 112), plus club favourite Tony Evans, plus the serviceable Irving in one draft is truly remarkable. In my book, this is the All-time greatest West Coast Eagles draft.