Injury-free Rosa laps it up
In a change room full of smiles, Matt Rosa was sporting one of the biggest grins after West Coast's round-one victory over the Western Bulldogs.
And it's not hard to understand why. The Eagles won by 65 points and Rosa was thrilled just to be fit and injury-free.
The 27-year-old was prolific at Patersons Stadium on Sunday, gathering 34 touches, five clearances and kicking a superb running goal from 50m.
He was one of a number of midfielders operating at a level not seen at the club for more than 18 months.
Scott Selwood (29 disposals), Matt Priddis (28), Luke Shuey (14) and plenty of others combined to help the Eagles win the ball at the contests and use it with precision once they found space.
Rosa said it was a performance he always believed they were capable of if fully fit.
"It was the type of footy you probably hope we would have played (last season) but for certain reasons we didn't," he said.
"I always had a lot of confidence in the group that we could play like that but thinking that it is one thing and actually doing it's another.
"It was a lot about winning the contested footy, pretty much simple things, contested footy, spreading hard and using the ball well.
"We've worked hard in the off-season on our ball use.
"It was just really pleasing that everyone worked really hard, we were relentless all day, and we came away with the win."
Rosa, Priddis, Selwood, Shuey, Sharrod Wellingham and Chris Masten contributed seven of West Coast's 21 goals.
Rosa said Simpson had not specifically focused on goals from midfield, but it would help the team's chances this year if they kept scoring them.
"We probably needed to spread the load a little bit more and hopefully we do that," he said.
Rosa has spent plenty of time on the sidelines in his 10 years at West Coast, with injuries including shin splints, a knee problem, a fractured collarbone and a rare thigh condition which nearly ended his career.
"Obviously it's been a frustrating few years, just not being able to get that continuity," he said.
"I've had an uninterrupted run so hopefully that continues and we keep playing good footy."
I always had a lot of confidence in the group …"Matt Rosa
