West Coast coach Adam Simpson knows the Harley Reid hype will be hard to contain.

Trying to curb the hype around Harley Reid is hard for West Coast coach Adam Simpson when the kid does things like he did on Sunday.

Harley Reid of the Eagles celebrates the win (Photo by Daniel Carson/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

West Coast coach Adam Simpson is still working out the best way to handle the hype around his “new toy” after teen teenage sensation Harley Reid sent social media in a frenzy with another highlight reel performance in the Eagles’ upset win over Melbourne.

Reid once again electrified the 43,408 screaming fans at Optus Stadium on Sunday evening with one moment of sheer audacity catching the attention of his coach and the entire competition.

As the No.1 draft pick fended off first Clayton Oliver and then Christian Petracca in a matter of seconds, having already booted a running goal from the centre square in the opening term, the dilemma facing Simpson became a greater one.

Simpson said he wanted to be “cautious” with the attention given to Reid, but the player’s brilliance made it hard to curb with his fend-offs lighting up social media.

“It was pretty good. I knew it was going to blow up social media,” Simpson said.

“He was really important for us tonight. He’s carrying a heavy weight at the moment. I’m trying to be cautious about how much attention he gets, but when he plays like that... (it’s hard).

Harley Reid, Oliver/Petracca double fend off, i could cry🥲#AFLEaglesDeespic.twitter.com/0XEvKF7vzg

— outbreezy (@outbreezyWC) May 19, 2024

“He just looked like he had fun tonight and that’s our goal for him is to enjoy being an AFL player.

“When he’s enjoying the game for what it is and playing to his strengths then we’re all happy and if he plays well, we’ll take that but if he doesn’t that’s OK too. He’s 19.”

Simpson acknowledged the special connection Reid has with the crowd, and its something he wants to work with as the Eagles continue to rebuild.

“We’re trying to connect with our crowd as much as we can,” Simpson said.

With Sunday’s win over Melbourne, West Coast has already matched its number of games won in 2023 – three.

The Eagles only won two games in a very difficult 2022 season.

After a horrendous two years, they have put together some decent games since the Gather Round loss to the Sydney Swans, where some signs of a turnaround started to show.

Since that game against the Swans, West Coast has beaten Richmond, Fremantle and now the Demons.

And they lost to Essendon by just six points.

HARLEY REID, THAT IS SENSATIONAL 🤩#AFLEaglesDeespic.twitter.com/qCrS3mCEPY

— AFL (@AFL) May 19, 2024

All four of those games were played at home, at Optus Stadium, where coach Adam Simpson says the rebuild needs to start.

“I think we’re getting harder to play against at home which is always the first step on a rebuild,” he said.

“So, you know the Essendon game, we probably didn’t play our greatest footy, but we were in touch.

“The biggest key is probably the crowd.

“Just trying to engage with them and bring them on our journey as much as we can.

“We’re trying to grow together with our fans and supporter base.”

Originally published as West Coast coach Adam Simpson knows the Harley Reid hype will be hard to contain.