In 2018, Shannon Hurn was the perfect, grounded counterpoint to the high flying Eagles.

He was their premiership captain. The Eagles bonding motto that year consisted of the three Fs: “Family, friends and flags”.

For Hurn, you could have added a couple more Fs – fishing and farming. He has always kept things simple and just played football at a high level for 15 years.

In 2022, Hurn is the prime example of why West Coast’s list build is going to complicated.

Hurn will either win or go very close to winning the Eagles’ best and fairest. He has never won it before, finishing second in 2009 and third in 2012 and 2018.

He is also just over a month from his 35th birthday.

Two months ago we would have pencilled two names in for retirement: Josh Kennedy and Hurn. Kennedy will retire, his age and banged-up body slowly wearing down his ability to provide a target and kick big goals.

But Hurn, at a club that clearly needs a significant list overhaul, has at least earned the right to have a conversation with the club about whether he plays on.

In an age where an extra season usually means an extra $500,000, very few retire of their own free will. Either their performance, their body or their club tells them its time.

In Kennedy’s case, his body has spoken. In Hurn’s case, if he is to go, are the Eagles prepared to tap a premiership captain, games record holder and their most consistent player for the season on the shoulder? Or does he get to go on?

There are lots of questions here with no clear answers. How do the Eagles approach this rebuild? Do they keep Hurn around as a standard setter, mentor and on-field coach for the club’s youngsters? Or do they tell him it’s time, so that the spot he occupies in the Eagles defence will be taken up by a younger player getting better, not a veteran getting old?

Fremantle have clearly profited from keeping David Mundy around and he looks set to see his team back into finals. But when the Dockers first acknowledged their need to rebuild (end of 2016 heading into 2017), Mundy was 31 turning 32, not 34 turning 35.

And while Hurn is the clearest example of this at the Eagles, he isn’t the only one. Jack Redden is set to trigger an extra year of his contract and turns 32 at the end of the year. Luke Shuey, already 32, was one significant hamstring tear away from a serious chat about retirement six weeks ago. But six weeks on, the tear hasn’t happened, so while Shuey isn’t expected to be captain next year, he is expected to be there.

Nic Naitanui is 32 with a perennially sore knee but is expected to play on. Andrew Gaff is 30 and has been solid, with 27 or more disposals in five of his past eight games after interruptions earlier in the season.

West Coast can expect some upside in 2023. They should get Oscar Allen back after a season laid to waste by a foot injury. They should get to see Campbell Chesser play after injury struck in the opening minutes of the first pre-season game.

Brady Hough, Rhett Bazzo, Jai Culley and Harry Edwards should all be better for the footy they have played this year. Jamaine Jones streaming off half back has been a find.

But between the youngsters who have shown something and the oldies who continue to perform there are a lot of unanswered questions about West Coast’s list.

The stats make that clear: If we go on goals kicked, the retiring Kennedy ranks first with 29, Jack Darling (30) is second with 23 and Jamie Cripps (30) is third with 16. Disposals? Redden leads. Tim Kelly (28) who is in his prime is second but then Hurn and Gaff are third and fourth.

Clearances? Kelly first, Shuey second, Redden third, Gaff fourth. It was refreshing to see Culley get to work at stoppages in the last two games.

Do the Eagles force some of their old players out to create opportunity for the kids? Or do they accept that is where the quality on their list is, keeping experience around and gradually integrating talented youth into the team first and then into more important roles

It’s a fine line. Keeping old heads and bodies around means more leadership and smooths out some of the rebuild bumps.

But it can also slow the rebuild down. No-one just gives up their spot. Youngsters can miss games because an older player is still marginally better. And there is no university degree for becoming a good AFL player.

It is the most brutal kind of work experience imaginable. Most who succeed do it by first trying and failing.