Liam Ryan says the only way is up for the struggling Eagles.

West Coast forward Liam Ryan believes the struggling AFL club can only improve and aims to play a key role in mentoring the team’s young players.

The Eagles are 16th on the ladder with a 3-14 record, just one win ahead of North Melbourne and Richmond, and are trying to avoid finishing last. The team recently parted ways with long-time coach Adam Simpson, and it may take years for them to become serious finals contenders again.

However, the arrival of young talents like Harley Reid, Campbell Chesser, Reuben Ginbey, Jai Culley, Clay Hall, Elijah Hewett, Noah Long, Brady Hough, Callum Jamieson, Ryan Maric, and Jack Williams has sparked hope for the future.

Ryan, who joined West Coast at the end of 2017 and won a premiership in his first year, is focused on helping develop the club’s new generation of stars. At 27, he sees himself as a senior player despite his relatively young age.

“The only thing we can do is go upwards,” Ryan said. “The younger boys look up to me as a senior player. Hopefully, I can be a part of that build, showing the young boys the road like Mark LeCras, Jamie Cripps, and Josh Kennedy showed me.”

West Coast narrowly lost to Brisbane by 13 points last week, a game that marked Simpson’s farewell. Interim coach Jarrad Schofield wants his team to continue fighting hard as they face St Kilda at Marvel Stadium on Saturday.

The Eagles will be without key players Jake Waterman (knee), Elliot Yeo (soreness), Tyler Brockman (ankle), and co-captain Liam Duggan (concussion). However, Jack Petruccelle returns from a hamstring injury, and Culley, Chesser, and Josh Rotham have been recalled.

Schofield emphasized the importance of improving over the next six weeks, highlighting the team’s pressure and contest levels against Brisbane as a standard to maintain.

St Kilda, with a 6-11 record, followed their surprising two-point win over Sydney with a 32-point loss to Adelaide last week.