Justin Longmuir prepares for first Western Derby as coach, first match in front of home fans at Optus Stadium

Catherine HealeyThe West Australian
VideoLongmuir heads into his first Western Derby as coach this weekend.

Justin Longmuir may be gearing up for his first Western Derby as coach, but his message is simple: “We can’t get off to a slow start again”.

Speaking on 7NEWS, Longmuir said while he was pleased with the fightback over St Kilda, he expects the Eagles to make them pay.

“We’ve got to look to build and improve on what we dished up last week,” he said.

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“If we get off to a slow start against West Coast, there probably won’t be any coming back.

“We need to get our starts right and our consistency right.”

The Western Derby will also be Longmuir’s first time coaching in front of home fans at Optus Stadium.

“It’s great for WA to have footy back here and great for our fans to get along and watch us play for the first time this year,” he said.

“It’s been missing from WA for so long.

“We’re a footy state … it’s exciting for WA footy fans.”

Longmuir put a line through injured duo Jesse Hogan and Griffin Logue, who both missed the win over the Saints, but was confident about Sean Darcy and Nat Fyfe’s chances.

“(Darcy) has recovered really well from that hit on the weekend,” he said.

“We’re confident at this stage that he’ll come up for the derby.

“We’ve got an eight-day break so it’s given him plenty of time.”

Longmuir said Fyfe and Darcy would both need to complete training on Thursday to be considered for the clash.

Tickets for Sunday’s Western Derby go on sale tomorrow.

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