Harley Reid has been criticised in the AFL world for taking his aggressive style of play too far — but legend Dermott Brereton doesn’t see it that way. Photo: Joel Carrett/AAP
Usually, when someone is called a ‘ratbag’, it’s probably not complimentary.
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But it is if you’re Dermott Brereton describing Harley Reid.
“He's a star and I love his attitude,” Brereton said.
“Many people say that he's got to calm down.”
And then he drops the line — the Merriam-Webster dictionary describes a ‘ratbag’ as “a stupid, eccentric, or disagreeable person”.
“But I always like the ratbags. The ratbags cause you trouble, but they win you games,” Brereton said.
“And as they get better, he’s going to win them games because he hates losing.
“He’s one of these boys that when he gets angry, it’s because he hates losing — whether it’s his team losing or him losing a contest, he hates it and I like to see that.”
Of course, there’s always a line between channelling aggression for good and getting too fired up.
Parts of the AFL world criticised Reid for crossing the line when he made what was deemed a dangerous tackle on Hawthorn’s Jai Newcombe in August, the incident leading to a two-game suspension.
But Brereton doesn’t agree with the scrutiny.
“There’s a balance where you start to hurt your team and I reckon he’s just nutted that out in 2026,” Brereton said.
“He’s still giving everything he’s got and angry at the opposition, but he’s worked out the balance of not committing actions that are counterproductive to what the team needs.”
Despite ending the season on a sour note, Reid was West Coast’s best in 2026.
He was named club champion in his third year after averaging 24.6 disposals, 13.4 contested possessions and 6.6 clearances — the Tongala man equal-seventh competition-wide in the last stat.
But it seems another local West Coast player has Brereton more excited.
We’re listing the many players from the region playing AFL footy currently, assessing what Brereton thinks about the pathway — and talking to him at Rich River Golf Club for Rural Imaging Australia and La Roche-Posay’s Skin Check Tour.
When Moama’s Jobe Shanahan comes up, Derm has to interject.
“Oh yeah, he's a good player,” Brereton said.
“I’ve got nothing against them, but Richmond gave up all these players for draft picks, wanted to find a key forward, and they drafted four key forwards with several top-end picks.
“But from those drafts, Shanahan is the best of all of them, and they missed him.
“So hopefully, the other boys come on for the Tigers because he’s going to be a very good player.
“I like his competitiveness and ability to mark the ball high off the ground.”
Brereton is a big fan of Moama’s Jobe Shanahan. Photo: Travis Hayto/AAP.
Given who Dermott Brereton the player was, he would have a soft spot for big key forwards.
But Shanahan undoubtedly made himself known to a national audience this year — most notably with a Rising Star nomination in round two.
There was also a purple patch in June and July, where the forward kicked 12 goals from round 14 to 19.
Finding a reward for your off-ball work is also a lot harder in a struggling side — West Coast going 4-19 and still in the early stages of a rebuild.
But if or when the Eagles surge back up the ladder, Shanahan and Reid will be at the heart of it.
Well, that’s if the opinion of a footy legend is anything to go by.
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