WEST Coast Eagles have defeated Collingwood Magpies by five points in a dramatic AFL grand final.
The Eagles conceded the first five goals of the game as Collingwood stunned the WA team into submission with a 29 point lead.
The Eagles missed a stack of opportunities to take the lead late in the final term, registering four consecutive behinds to reduce the Magpies’ lead to a single point.
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READ NOWDom Sheed stepped up superbly with two minutes remaining in the contest, slotting his match-winning set shot from an acute angle as the Eagles triumphed 11.13 (79) to 11.8 (74).
Eagles midfielder Luke Shuey was awarded the Norm Smith Medal, with 34 possessions – 19 of them contested.
Scores were level at three quarter time and the last term was full of high drama, with West Coast missing a string of scoring opportunities.
Jack Darling, who was outstanding in the third term after a barren first half, could have put the result beyond doubt after Sheed’s goa.
But Darling dropped a sitter of a mark in the goal square and the Eagles scored a rushed behind.
Collingwood had to go long and Shuey took his mark.
West Coast held firm after Collingwood’s first-term burst, with key defenders Jeremy McGovern and Tom Barrass immense, and they only trailed by two goals at half time.
The Eagles won the flag without star ruckman Nic Naitanui (knee) and top onballer (suspension), who were out of action for the finals.
Key defender Brad Shepphard was also ruled out after injuring his hamstring early in the finals series.
Collingwood would have equalled Carlton and Essendon with the most AFL premierships on 16 had they won.
It was an outstanding effort this season from the Magpies, who overcame a horror run of injuries to reach their first grand final since 2011.
Their near-miss came a year after they nearly sacked coach Nathan Buckley.