West Coast ruckman Nic Naitanui had one of his dreadlocks pulled and was then reported for shoving Zach Merrett into a boundary fence before the Eagles big win in the elimination final against Essendon.
Naitanui, playing his first game since suffering a syndesmosis injury eight weeks ago, produced a series of potent ruck taps and crunching tackles to give his side the midfield ascendancy.
West Coast opened up a 41-point lead midway through the second quarter, and were able to withstand two Essendon fightbacks to secure the 17.14 (116) to 9.7 (61) win in front of 59,216 fans.
The Eagles will now take on either Geelong or Collingwood at the MCG on Friday week in a semi-final blockbuster.
Naitanui finished with 24 hit-outs and 14 disposals in a promising return, but the 2012 All Australian was reported for shoving Zach Merrett into the fence after the Bombers midfielder tugged on one of his dreadlocks.
The angry exchange sparked a heated melee, and Merrett was reported for the original hair tug.
But both Merrett and Naitanui will probably escape with a fine given there were no injuries to come out of it.
Naitanui showcased his speed at ground level during the match, running down Bombers speedster Adam Saad in a mad dash in which he reached a speed of 31.7km/h.
Essendon now haven’t won a final since 2004 after the 55-point thumping, and Eagles coach Adam Simpson was proud of the way his team responded from the recent losses to Richmond and Hawthorn.
“It was a pretty professional response,” Simpson said.
“I’m really proud of my players. It was a four-quarter effort.”
© AAP
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