West Coast will head to the AFL tribunal to challenge Harley Reid’s suspension, with the Eagles desperate not to lose their best player for the opening two games of next season.

Reid’s sling tackle on Jai Newcombe during last weekend’s loss to Hawthorn was graded as careless conduct with high impact and high contact, resulting in a two-match ban.

Newcombe got up and kicked a long-range goal in the wake of the fourth-quarter incident before going off to be assessed by medical staff. He returned to the field a few minutes later to play out the remainder of the match.

After having Monday evening and Tuesday morning to weigh up the merits of heading to the AFL Tribunal to fight the penalty, West Coast opted to take on the case.

It is unclear how the club intends to challenge the charge, but it is likely they will argue the impact was medium rather than high in an attempt to downgrade the ban with the Tribunal to meet Wednesday 3pm AWST.

Speaking on Tuesday morning, Reid’s midfield teammate Elliot Yeo said he was glad the club was fighting the suspension.

“It’s a hard one. Newcombe’s tried to shrug the tackle, used all of his body weight and force, and Harley’s kind of ended up just going with him,” Yeo said on 96FM.

“Even if Harley lets go... I guess Newcombe’s probably going to end up still doing the same thing as what he’s done.

“I don’t think there was any sort of malice... I’m glad that West Coast are going to challenge it.

“It’s weird. How do you know these days? You let him go, he’s going to handball it. You don’t, you end up getting pinged a couple of weeks. There’s such a fine line now when you tackle people.”

Reid played all 23 games for the Eagles this season and is considered a near-certainty to earn his first John Worsfold Medal as the club’s best-and-fairest.

But he also struggled with discipline at times in 2026. Reid on Sunday conceded his 69th free kick of the year, marking a new AFL-era record for the most given away by any player in a single season.

The Eagles will also challenge a $1500 fine for Brandon Starcevich’s charge of careless conduct with an umpire, via a written submission.