West Coast forward Jake Waterman will look to cover Jack Darling’s loss in the spread with new look attack

West Coast breakout star Jake Waterman has admitted it will be tough for his side to replace veteran Jack Darling in their attack, but is adamant they have the variety of forwards to do so.

The Eagles will be without their second all-time leading goal-scorer for the first time in more than a decade on the back of his shock trade to North Melbourne in the off-season.

And despite the 32-year-old’s returns diminishing in recent seasons, replacing the 298-gamer — who often lured their rivals best defenders — will be a challenge for the forward line.

But Waterman, who became the first player since Darling in 2019 to kick more than 50 goals in a season believes the Eagles attack can pull on different levers to cover his loss.

“Jack was such a legend for this football club – it’s going to be different not having him in the forward line,” he told Fox Footy.

“He’s been a staple for so many years.

“We’ve got myself and Oscar (Allen) … You throw guys like Jamie Cripps, Liam Ryan and add Matty Owies to that forward line, we get Noah Long back after a year out with injury – we’ve got a lot of variety.”

Waterman was the surprise breakout player for West Coast last season, being named in the All-Australian forward line on the back of an illness that almost ended his AFL career.

The 26-year-old battled ulcerative colis, a rare bowel disease, that ended his 2023 season early after he was hospitalised in an away trip in Adelaide.

Waterman said his illness had put football into perspective and he would not be take success for granted.

“As soon as I turned that initial corner (with his health battle), the footy nuffy in me found its way to the fore and I was pretty keen on getting back and just resetting my football career,” he said.

“I had a no-fuss approach to where I saw my future – it’s funny when you drop the shoulders a little bit what can happen.

“I don’t take things for granted – I have a bit of perspective in life. It works wonders.

“It’s no coincidence I had my career-best year off the back of that mind frame.”

Waterman said he has now found a balance in his life that has helped him find his love of the game even as the Eagles battle to get off the bottom end of the ladder.

“I got my body in a good space, a bit of opportunity, playing a good couple of games does a world of good for the confidence,” he said.

“I was able to take my game to the next level and I’m pretty proud of what I was able to come back from and where I was able to get my footy and my body, and my quality of life back to.

“For me, in the nicest way possible, I wasn’t taking it too seriously week after week.

“Obviously my performance I take a lot of pride in that, but I wasn’t getting too caught up in the ups and downs of playing a good game/bad game or wins and losses. There’s definitely something in that.”

West Coast will get to test their new-look attack against Darling when they take on North Melbourne in their opening pre-season fixture at Hands Oval on March 1.