Ugly reality of WC captain’s rival catch-up... and why it’s on Eagles coach to fix free agent mess

West Coast’s start to 2025 has left the club and its fans on edge after just three rounds, and speculation over the future of co-captain Oscar Allen is only amplifying their concerns.

Several outlets have reported in the last 24 hours that the 26-year-old star met with Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell, leaving plenty to the imagination about where Allen’s future may lie beyond this season.

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As reported by Fox Sports News’ David Zita last week, the Hawks are “up to their eyeballs” in the chase for the key tall, with Mitchell’s meeting only pouring fuel on the fire of speculation regarding their hot pursuit. Contracted until the end of next year, Allen will almost certainly become a restricted free agent in 2026, but his club’s lack of success lately means a move this year is yet to be ruled out.

Having lost their first three home-and-away matches this season by an average of eight goals, the Eagles look far from the side they hoped to be after three years of rebuilding. First-year coach Andrew McQualter came close to claiming a shock win over Brisbane — ironically, another club in the race for Allen — but either side of that match, they have looked far from on the mend.

Speaking to foxfooty.com.au, premiership Eagle Will Schofield stated first and foremost that he wasn’t shocked to hear of Mitchell’s catch-up in his home state of Western Australia.

“Sam Mitchell has got a track record of meeting and acquiring players that he wants. I think the landscape has changed significantly over the past three or four years with not only clubs, but players and coaches being more open to discussions during the year,” Schofield said.

“I don’t think it’s surprising, and I don’t think Sam Mitchell is overly worried about people knowing either.”

Allen and Mitchell never crossed paths as players, with Allen drafted to the Eagles in the same year that the 329-gamer retired from his one-year playing stint at the club. However, the four-time premiership Hawk remained as an assistant coach at Lathlain during Allen’s first year as an AFL player in 2018, before moving back to Victoria.

Just last off-season did the Hawthorn head coach successfully recruit star defender Tom Barrass away from the Eagles’ nest, in a move that has reinvigorated his backline alongside the inclusion of former Saint Josh Battle.

Could Oscar Allen (left) be reunited with Tom Barrass (right) just 12 months after the latter’s move to Hawthorn? (Photo by Russell Freeman/Getty Images) Source: Getty Images

As the Hawks continue to assert themselves as a genuine flag threat, the contrast between them and rivals West Coast grows greater by the week. So, as success begins to loom at Waverley Park, Allen would understandably be reassessing his own future after meeting with Mitchell.

The unfortunate consequence of their catch-up, however, is the uncertainty it creates for teammates, coaches, and fans. As a co-captain, the optics of it are far from desirable. But given the ruthless nature of the AFL landscape, you can easily understand why the 96-game forward is considering a move to a club where short-term success appears far more likely. Put simply, Allen is stuck between a rock and a hard place.

“It’s becoming such an open market that whether you’re captain or not, you’re probably obliged to go and have those chats now. Do you want it getting out to the public? I would say no,” Schofield continued.

“If you’re captain, it creates a bit more pressure for you to then go and have that conversation with either your teammates or coaches. I’d expect Oscar to be having those conversations with his players, especially his younger ones.

“Importantly, this is happening because West Coast hasn’t been able to negotiate a contract with him. Whether that’s Oscar’s fault, or West Coast’s fault or a combination, this is only happening because Oscar doesn’t have a suitable contract to sign.

“Your captain’s not looking around if he’s got a contract, or at least one that he wants to sign ... He’s a starting key forward in 17 other teams, so if West Coast don’t get a deal done, he could go to any club he wants.”

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Allen’s predicament leaves new coach Andrew McQualter with a headache, to say the least. Already tasked with managing the 24/7 spotlight on second-year player Harley Reid and accelerating the club’s rebuild as best he can, losing a leader and player of Allen’s calibre would hit hard — not just for McQualter, but for everyone at West Coast.

The magnitude of a co-captain potentially leaving the club is so significant that Schofield would be shocked if the 38-year-old coach hasn’t already addressed the new elephant in the room.

“I’ve never been coached by Andrew McQualter, so I don’t know what his style is, but I’d be very surprised if he hasn’t addressed the group as to where all of this sits,” Schofield told foxfooty.com.au.

“For a team environment to have your captains speaking to other clubs, that’s not a good thing, and I think it’s a bloody difficult thing to navigate; especially if you’re a new coach. When you put your head in the sand and pretend things aren’t happening, that’s when you run into trouble.

“I do wonder what he’s thinking, because no doubt he signed up to the West Coast Eagles off the back of (it) being a huge and successful football club that has found ways to regenerate itself quickly, even off the back of failed seasons.

“It’s probably been the most disappointing and most unsuccessful period the club’s ever had, so it’s a different environment at West Coast to when I was at the football club. It was driven from the top, (but) it’s in a different space now.”

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A loss this Sunday to GWS in western Sydney would give the Eagles a 0-4 record to start their season for the second year running. Allen has won just five of his last 41 AFL matches — a staggering contrast to the Hawks, who have won eight of their last nine matches and 16 of their last 19.

No one could have reasonably expected McQualter to instantly create a winning culture, but the vision he shares for the club going forward may end up being what determines whether Allen shuts the door on rival interest, or walks out of it.

“It’s probably also worth noting that I think the majority of players are motivated by winning yes over money … he (McQualter) needs to create a winning environment to keep Oscar Allen,” Schofield ended by saying.

“Oscar was an emergency in 2018 in the grand final, and I know that that drives him, and that’s nothing to do with money or opportunity — that’s to do with winning.

“Andrew McQualter can’t create a winning culture within six weeks of starting his job, so he’s got to be able to sell Oscar the vision … and if Allen doesn’t believe in it, I think he’ll go.”

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