West Coast coach Andrew McQualter is backing Harley Reid to fire from round one, saying the former No.1 draft pick is a big boy who can handle the heat that will come his way.
Reid took the competition by storm in his debut season last year, creating a highlights package that would be the envy of any AFL player.
The 19-year-old won the goal-of-the-year award when he burned off Melbourne star Christian Petracca with a three-bounce sprint before kicking truly from 47m.
Reid’s spectacular marks and huge fend-offs were other items that delighted Eagles fans.
Hopes of Reid taking things up another notch in 2025 seemingly took a blow over the summer as the rising star battled a raft of injuries.
A minor concussion was followed by an ongoing leg issue and ankle soreness, with the ailments halting Reid’s momentum.
But McQualter has declared Reid ready to go for Sunday’s clash with Gold Coast at Optus Stadium, the rookie coach holding high hopes about what his star charge can achieve.
“Harley’s ready to perform,” McQualter said on Thursday.
“A lot of players go through different things in pre-season.
“But when players are picked, they’re picked to perform at AFL level. So Harley’s ready to go.”
Reid became a big target for taggers as the season wore on last year, with the tactic proving to be a great success for opposition sides.
McQualter feels Reid will have the weapons to handle any team who target him.
“We’re ready for it if it comes,” McQualter said.
“But also, he’s a big boy and he can look after himself, so we’ll have some plans if it happens.
“I’m sure Harley will be able cope with that.”
There’s a big prospect Reid will go head to head with Gold Coast star Matt Rowell on Sunday.
“They are certainly two bulls, so they’ll be exciting to watch going against each other,” McQualter said.
“Historically, Dimma (Gold Coast coach Damien Hardwick) hasn’t tagged a lot, so we’ll see where that lands, but it’d be a good battle.”
One aspect that could halt Reid’s influence in the first third of the season is the absence of star midfielder Elliot Yeo, who is still another five to seven weeks away from returning from an ankle and knee injury.
Yeo and Reid formed a tantalising one-two punch last year, but Yeo’s absence will allow teams to target Reid even further.
Gold Coast will be without Mac Andrew (chest) and Sam Flanders (back) against the Eagles, but midfielder Lachie Weller (hamstring) and key defender Charlie Ballard (ankle) are expected to play.
West Coast were set to hand Bo Allan an AFL debut, but the No.16 pick from last year’s national draft has been ruled out due to an illness that resulted in him losing several kilograms.