Eagles, Dockers look to put year of gloom behind them

Seeing coaches sacked is never fun - especially when they're highly-respected individuals with great football brains and widely liked in the industry.

Which brings us to our next scenario, glass half full: West Coast and Fremantle arguably represent the two clubs with the biggest upside in the AFL this year.

For the Eagles, the upside is due to two things.

First, given the club is coming from such a horrifically-low base, it shouldn't be too challenging to make a significant leap forward in 2024.

Second, Harley Reid.

A combined five wins in the past two years is horrible in anyone's books.

Five losses in excess of 100 points last season - including the inexcusable 171-point humiliation against Sydney at the SCG in round 15 - is normally a guaranteed coach killer.

Simpson looked almost certain to lose his job as the losses piled up.

But a fighting win over the Western Bulldogs in round 23 and a groundswell of support from the club's huge fan base convinced the board to give him another chance.

You can also bet your bottom dollar that Test great Justin Langer - a good friend of Simpson's - played a key role in swaying his fellow West Coast board members to back the 2018 premiership coach.

Nic Naitanui, Luke Shuey and Shannon Hurn retired at the end of last season.

The likes of Andrew Gaff, Jeremy McGovern, Jamie Cripps, Elliot Yeo and Jack Darling are in the twilight of their careers.

But the injection of youth over the past two years has breathed new life into the club and fuelled hopes of a revival - albeit one that will take years to fully blossom.

Reid is the poster boy for that hope.

Never before has there been this magnitude of hype surrounding a No.1 draft pick.

The 18-year-old Victorian has already been likened to Richmond great Dustin Martin, and the early signs are promising.

Clay Hall, pick No.38 in last year's national draft, is also expected to shine once he overcomes his pre-season ankle injury, and Archer Reid is a bright prospect.

Last year's crop - Reuben Ginbey, Noah Long and Elijah Hewett - are also tipped to make further strides forward.

If West Coast can win six or seven games this season - and more importantly cut their average losing margin from last year's 64 points down to about 25 - it will fuel confidence that the rebuild is on track.

"We're in a build. I'm really excited about what we can do," Simpson says.

"We'll grow together. The list is pretty young. Our older players have embraced that."

At Fremantle, Longmuir has so much bright, young, A-grade talent at his disposal that success should be inevitable.

Andrew Brayshaw, Caleb Serong, Jye Amiss, Luke Jackson, Michael Frederick, Jordan Clark and Hayden Young are already established despite their youth.

The old bull, Nat Fyfe, is on track for a strong campaign in his favoured midfield position.

Emerging youngsters Nathan O'Driscoll, Neil Erasmus, Tom Emmett and Matthew Johnson could explode this year or next.

The loss of Lachie Schultz to Collingwood and Liam Henry to St Kilda hurts, especially after losing Rory Lobb, Blake Acres and Griffin Logue a year earlier.

But Fremantle have the depth to cover those losses, and finals should be the bare minimum for a side with this much talent.

Longmuir is entering his fifth year as coach, and 2024 represents the first time he's under pressure to keep his job.

Out of contract at the end of the season, Longmuir faces a make-or-break period in the first few months of the campaign.

He should have every confidence that he will come out a winner, with hopes high the 14th-placed finish of 2023 - just a year after making the semi-finals - will be reflected on as the blip the club needed to have.

"The one thing I've noticed is the desire of our players to get better and be the best version of themselves ... and train with a level and intensity that's at a premiership standard," Fremantle captain Alex Pearce says.

"We want to play finals, we want to have a sustained period of success, and that starts this year hopefully."

Australian Associated Press