IN March, footy experts predicted the Eagles would be anchored towards the bottom of the ladder. Yet the club went on to be one of the best performers of 2018.

These are the 10 moments that made it such a year to remember.

1. Loss to Fremantle in pre-season at Joondalup. March 11.
Tipsters jumped off the Eagles after their 62-point hammering from Fremantle in the JLT Series match at Joondalup Arena in March. It was West Coast’s last hit-out before the season proper and they were made to look second-rate. With ruckman Nic Naitanui sitting out, the midfield mauling the Eagles copped appeared to vindicate fears for their on-ball division without retired stars Matt Priddis and Sam Mitchell.

2. Beating Geelong at home. Round 3. April 8.
Fourteen points down in the last quarter, West Coast’s home win over Geelong in round three was crucial as they established the early season momentum that carried them to 10 straight victories. The Cats, featuring star midfield trio Patrick Dangerfield, Joel Selwood and Gary Ablett, lost three players to injury and eventually wilted as the Eagles piled on six goals in 10 minutes for a triumph.

3. Beating Richmond at home. Round 9. May 20.
This was the day the Eagles became the real deal. It wasn’t up for debate any longer after West Coast ran away from flag favourites Richmond to win by 47 points at Optus Stadium in round nine. Jack Darling starred with six goals in the finest outing of his career. The top-of-the-table showdown was viewed as a potential grand final preview.

4. Naitanui mark of the year contender vs GWS. Round 16. July 8.
Naitanui’s leap put the exclamation mark on West Coast’s crucial 11-point win over Greater Western Sydney, ending a run of three losses. GWS co-captain Phil Davis had a close-up view of Naitanui’s screamer and said the dreadlocked ruckman gave the Eagles “an advantage like no other”. “He’s terrifying. He’s an enormous human being. He moves like a cat and gives first use to the midfield,” Davis said.

5. Naitanui Injury. Round 17. July 15.
A week after his mark of the year contender, Naitanui’s season was over. As is often the case with dreaded anterior cruciate ligament tears, it happened in the most innocuous fashion. West Coast coach Adam Simpson struggled to keep his emotions in check after the match. “Your heart breaks a bit if it’s the case — it’s his other knee and words can’t describe it,” Simpson said.

6. Win over Collingwood at the MCG. Round 17. July 15.
West Coast’s poor MCG record had been a subject of discussion ever since they won the 2006 flag. Desperate to roll a fellow challenger there, the Eagles rushed back forward trio Josh Kennedy, Jack Darling and Mark LeCras from injury and it paid dividends. “The MCG conversation has been going on and on, so hopefully we've put that to bed a little bit,” Simpson said.

7. Peter Staples incident. July 15.
TV footage of club integrity manager Peter Staples pushing cameramen at Perth Airport on Naitanui’s return was an ugly postscript to a tremendous win and led to criticism of the Eagles being arrogant. The media kept their distance from Naitanui and did not approach him for comment. West Coast chief executive Trevor Nisbett eventually issued an unreserved apology for the behaviour of Staples.

8. McGovern re-signing with club. July 24.
Star defender Jeremy McGovern, who claimed a third-straight All -ustralian guernsey, ended months of negotiations by agreeing to remain at West Coast. He turned down a huge offer to move to Fremantle, where his father Andrew was an inaugural Docker, and signed a five-year extension worth more than $1million a season.

9. Gaff punch. Round 20. August 5.
It was the most shocking and controversial single moment in the history of the spiteful western derby rivalry. Even the famous Demolition Derby in 2000 didn’t feature a punch that did as much damage as Andrew Gaff did to Dockers youngster Andrew Brayshaw with a swinging left fist in round 20. Brayshaw broke his jaw and displaced five teeth while Gaff had his season ended by an eight-match ban.

10. After the siren Port win. Round 21. August 11.
History repeated as the Eagles came back from the dead against Port Adelaide at Adelaide Oval in round 21. McGovern coolly slotted a set shot after the siren from almost the exact same spot on the ground where teammate Luke Shuey did the same thing after the extra-time siren in last season’s epic elimination final there. It prompted emotional celebrations, with the team sending a photo from the rooms to Gaff.