Ex-Eagles coach Adam Simpson reveals he had 'several players ringing' to attempt to join Harley Reid

Axed West Coast coach Adam Simpson has revealed the club received numerous calls from "A-grade" rivals, who were keen to be traded in, to play alongside youngster Harley Reid.

Simpson, who parted ways with the club with just six rounds of the home-and-away season remaining, opened up on what it was like coaching Reid, and how seeing the first year star dominating helped the club reach new heights.

Although the Eagles won just five games in 2024 and finished in 16th, Simpson said rival players were attempting to work out how they could come and play alongside the 19-year-old.

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Reid, who was taken at pick one in the 2023 AFL draft, took the league by storm, earning a rising star nomination in round five for his outing against Richmond.

Early in the 2024 season, he was dubbed the saviour for not only the Eagles, but football in WA by Nathan Brown.

"We heard he was a once-in-a-generation player and we're seeing that in front of our eyes. They needed a leader to get behind," Brown said back in April on Nine's Sunday Footy Show.

"Who would have thought that a young man coming in, in his first season, could be that for a whole state of football?"

And Simpson knew exactly the talent he had, considering he started fielding calls from rival players in the middle of the season, asking just how they could join Reid.

"We had several players, A-grade talent, ringing us ... and the conversations were 'I want to play with Harley'," Simpson said on SEN radio on Tuesday.

"He's generational. He's just a hunter and he drags teammates with him ... the fans and all that stuff, the number 9 and the euphoria around that, that's one thing, but the way he plays is infectious and you want to play with him," Simpson said on SEN radio on Tuesday.

But the 2018 Eagles premiership coach admitted that the hype died down once the side lost a few matches.

"Conversations like that were happening, but it did dry up a little bit (after some losses)," he said.

But the interest in Reid will last his career, Simpson believes.

"One thing about Harley is his character," Simpson said.

"In interviews with Harley we asked, 'Why do you play the game?' He was like 'I play to win and I play for my mates' and they're the two best things aren't they?

"That typifies his attitude towards the game, he keeps it very simple, very relaxed kid, he'll learn to be a pro in the coming years.

"(Reid) had to deal with a lot this year, my son is the same age and he gets a pimple and he's a bit worried. Harley is on the back page (of the West Australian newspaper) every day for 30 days in a row. So dealing with expectations, he's done that as an 18-year-old and he's done it pretty well.

"He just wants to play footy with his mates and play to win. That should never leave him, that should be his number on reason to play."

Reid, who was a likely lock to win this year's rising star award, was suspended after a dangerous tackle on St Kilda's Darcy Wilson, ruling him ineligible to win.