PLAYERS staging for free kicks has become a hot AFL topic, but West Coast young gun Liam Duggan doesn’t believe the practice is creeping into the game.

Emerging Melbourne star Clayton Oliver has been in the firing line on social media for an incident that saw Eagles defender Will Schofield reported for striking after the half-time siren on Saturday night at Domain Stadium. 

Schofield's elbow caught the young Dee with a glancing blow to the chin and Oliver fell to the ground immediately after being shocked by the hit.

Social media lit up attacking the 19-year-old for diving, with former Test cricketer Damien Martyn among the critics on Twitter.

Oliver was later drawn into an online spat with Eagles fan Martyn, creating even more headlines.

"The whole thing has probably been blown out of the water a bit more than what it needed to be," Duggan said on Monday.

"Unfortunately both boys (Oliver and Schofield) have got to cop what is going to come their way. 

"I can't really comment a whole lot on it. It's for Clayton to handle now.

"Unfortunately there has been a bit of negative feedback for him, but whether or not it's true or not, who knows, but we'll wait and see what the decision is (from the Match Review Panel)."

Oliver's tumble to the ground came in the week after Richmond gun Alex Rance was cleared by the MRP for milking a free kick in a push-and-shove with Lance Franklin.

Asked if staging was creeping back into the sport, Duggan replied: "I don't think it is, but obviously we don't want it to be part of the game and the AFL have made that clear."

The Schofield-Oliver stoush was part of a fiery contest, with Melbourne having the last laugh thanks to Tom McDonald's brilliant fifth goal which snatched a dramatic three-point win.

The Eagles led by 16 points nearing time-on in the final term, but let the points slip.

Duggan was quick to shift the blame from Lewis Jetta – who missed a set shot to put West Coast ahead by 21 points – and said the "flat" Eagles needed to move on. 

"We've seen across the year that it's hard to hold onto leads and you're never out of it – we spoke about that during the week," he said.

"It's unfortunate for us we weren't able to hold onto that lead, but you just can't take the foot off the throat at any stage." 

The Eagles (7-6) have lost four of their last five games and are facing a crucial away trip to Etihad Stadium to take on the Western Bulldogs this Saturday.

West Coast's last appearance at the roofed venue ended in a 61-point hiding from Essendon in round nine.

"Anywhere we play we need to win, so it (last game at Etihad) won't be spoken about too much," Duggan said.

The Eagles are hopeful spearhead Josh Kennedy will be available after missing the past three games due to a calf strain and Achilles soreness.