Harley Reid called out as Simon Goodwin fires telling message to West Coast Eagles

Simon Goodwin has warned Harley Reid to expect a tough time when he lines up against the Demons at the MCG on Sunday. Reid starred for West Coast as they pulled off a massive round 10 upset over Melbourne, racking up 21 disposals, seven clearances, two goals and three score assists in a barnstorming display.

As well as those incredible stats for the rookie, in a goal-of-the-year contender he burned off Christian Petracca with an insane turn of foot before taking three bounces to kick one of his majors. Reid also consistently got the better of both Petracca and Clayton Oliver in what was one of the best performances of the 2024 AFL season.

But Goodwin says his side will come in with a specialised plan to shut down the rookie this time around. "He showed us last time what he's capable of to a really high level. So there's no doubt we'll be prepared for Harley Reid," Goodwin said on Thursday.

"We will have some plans in place to make sure he doesn't have the impact that he had on the game last time. That's one of our challenges for the weekend. The midfield need to respond in that area this week against a high-quality midfield group."

While the Demons coach smacked down claims they were out for "revenge or retribution", he said his side - which currently sits two points outside the top eight - needs to get that winning feeling back as they look to make a late charge into a finals spot. "It wasn't too long ago that we played West Coast at their best," he said.

"Five weeks ago in Perth, they dominated the game and clearly beat us through the middle of the ground. So we certainly know what their best looks like, and we'll be preparing for that."

Demons face difficult Jake Melksham decision

Goodwin also faces a difficult decision over whether to bring forward Jake Melksham straight back into the team on his return from an anterior cruciate ligament tear or ease him back into things via the VFL. "He's been doing match loads for six or seven weeks," Goodwin said.

"He's certainly in contention to play at both levels but we'll work out what's best for Jake." Goodwin, however, says Christian Salem (knee) and Jake Bowey (corked back) would line up to face West Coast.

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Harley Reid set to become highest-paid player in the AFL?

After years of battling to avoid finishing last, the Eagles have shown signs of serious improvement in 2024, with Reid seen as an integral part of the club's future. Despite being contracted until the end of 2026, there is already plenty of concern about his future and the Eagles are keen to lock him down to a new deal as soon as possible.

Under AFL rules, top-20 draft picks are given a mandatory three-year contract and are allowed to begin negotiations on a new deal after Round 6. With that timeframe passed, the Eagles can lock down Reid on a new deal any time now but they also know they have him for at least the next two and a half years. The Eagles are, however, reportedly working on a new deal for Reid and are set to table an offer of up to $2million a season for the superstar - which would make him by far the highest-paid player in the AFL.

In May, 7News Perth's Ryan Daniels revealed that the Eagles expect him to stay long-term and they are looking at extending his contract for at least another two years on a deal worth well north of $1million a season. “Semi-informed gut feel would be a couple of years extension, maybe go to five years (total). Free agency would obviously come at the eight-year mark, he’s not going to go beyond that, that’s pretty clear,” Daniels said on Triple M.

“I would think a couple of years and the money is going to be significant, it’s going to be more than a million dollars a year. That’s just the market-dictated value and then also the salary cap is going to increase, the new CBA. I would say you’re looking at $1.3-$1.5m a year. I know some people are saying $2m a year, I don’t think it will quite get to that in the early stages, but at some point in his career, I think Harley Reid will be earning $2m a year.”

Dustin Martin is currently the highest-paid player in the AFL, on a deal worth $1.35 million a season. However, with that deal ending at the end of this season and the next highest-paid player being Nat Fyfe who is on $1.15 million a year, in reality, Reid's next contract is very likely to be the most lucrative deal in the entire league.

with AAP