Backward AFL Eagles could face the chop

West Coast's finals hopes are looking dim after they put in a horror display in Sunday's 38-point loss to North Melbourne in Perth.

West Coast coach Adam Simpson will contemplate swinging the axe to try to get his side's AFL finals hopes back on track.

The Eagles are struggling in 11th spot with a 4-6 record following their meek 38-point loss to North Melbourne in Perth on Sunday.

West Coast scored just six goals from 52 inside-50m entries.

A goal after the final siren from midfielder Matt Priddis meant West Coast narrowly avoided posting their lowest-ever score at Patersons Stadium.

Simpson admits his team took a step back in the 12.10 (82) to 6.8 (44) loss, and his players could pay the price at the selection table.

Sharrod Wellingham has already been dropped once this year and could again come under fire, while Josh Hill tallied just one possession after coming on as a sub in the final quarter.

Midfielder Luke Shuey is another player who has struggled for consistency as he battles soreness after games.

"It was probably a bit of a reality check for some of us," Simpson said of his team's latest loss.

"If you don't deserve to play, you won't. I'm not giving games away.

"If you're not performing, then we've got to look at you.

"The thing we've got at the moment is guys are performing in patches, just not in four quarters, and quite often not when it counts."

The Eagles' finals hopes will go on the line over the next five games when they take on Hawthorn (Aurora Stadium), Gold Coast (home), St Kilda (ES), Fremantle and Sydney (home).

Simpson is hopeful rebounding defender Xavier Ellis will recover from a corked leg in time to take on the Hawks on Saturday, while skipper Darren Glass will return from a hip injury.

One bright light to come out of Sunday's loss for the Eagles was the continued improvement of ruckman Nic Naitanui, whose influence on games has grown in recent weeks.

Naitanui, who has been blighted by groin issues over the past 18 months, copped widespread criticism for his slow start to the year.

But strong displays against Collingwood and North Melbourne suggest he isn't far away from regaining the form that led to him being crowned an All-Australian in 2012.


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Source: AAP


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