They kept hitting him: Harley Reid’s maturity praised
Justin Chadwick |
They’re the AFL’s version of Batman and Robin, and Elliot Yeo has praised the growing maturity of Harley Reid in the face of teams “hitting him after the play”.
Reid tallied a career-high 30 disposals in last week’s upset 17-point win over North Melbourne, with his best-afield display playing a key role in West Coast snapping a 14-game losing run.
Arguably just as impressive as what Reid did with the ball was his mature approach whenever he was physically targeted.
The former No.1 draft pick was picked off several times during the match as the Kangaroos tried to ruffle his feathers.
Reid stayed on task to help power West Coast to a confidence-boosting win, and the 20-year-old will be key to the Eagles’ hopes of springing an upset in Sunday’s clash with the Power in Adelaide.
“Harley was huge. I thought he played a real team-first-orientated game, real tough,” Yeo told AAP.
“They went hard after him. They kept hitting him after the play, and he just kept knuckling down and just played good, hard, tough football and didn’t give away too many sillies (silly free kicks), which was unbelievable.
“It just shows that he’s maturing as a footballer and as a person.”
Yeo’s absence for all of last season with a serious ankle injury left Reid vulnerable to opposition taggers.
But with Yeo now back and firing on all cylinders, the Batman and Robin bromance that flourished so well in 2024 is back in full swing.
Yeo has kicked four goals across two games this season, the best being his clutch set shot from the boundary line after the three-quarter time siren against North Melbourne.
“I flushed it. It felt good. As soon as I kicked it, I thought, ‘hello, we’re on here’,” Yeo said.
“It’s good to be back playing. It gives myself some confidence as well in my body that I’m building in the right direction.”
West Coast will unveil former Crow Harry Schoenberg against Port, and have recalled first-round draft pick Josh Lindsay.
Mature-age revelation Milan Murdock (hamstring) and key defender Harry Edwards (concussion) have been sidelined through injury, with no timeline set for their return.
Port Adelaide rebounded from their shock 46-point round-one loss to North Melbourne with a 63-point thumping of Essendon.
The Power will be without skipper Connor Rozee for around three months after he tore his hamstring, while Todd Marshall (ankle) and Miles Bergman (ankle) were also ruled out.
Former Suns and Dockers midfielder Will Brodie has been named for his Power debut, while Josh Lai will make his AFL debut.
But there was no room for Brownlow medallist Ollie Wines, who was overlooked despite having served his suspension for last year’s dangerous bump.
AAP