WEST Coast midfielder Jack Redden was once described by teammate and captain Luke Shuey as the most selfless player he had played with.
Shuey's return from injury against the Western Bulldogs on Sunday and the resulting midfield shuffle will provide the perfect illustration of what makes the underrated 30-year-old such a team-first player.
Redden has carried a heavy load for the Eagles as an inside midfielder this season and flourished, but a return to the wing is on the cards as Shuey and clearance specialist Tim Kelly are injected into the middle.
Far from a frustration, the move out of his preferred role for the betterment of the team just makes sense for Redden, who has never understood players who approach their football with a selfish mindset.
"I feel like I've always had that in my game and when I see people who aren't like that it frustrates me a little bit," Redden told AFL.com.au ahead of a midfield showdown with the Bulldogs.
"I just don't understand the mindset. All I want to do is have success as a team and to do that you have to sacrifice a little bit of your role for the betterment of the group.
"I'm probably suited more to playing that wing role than a Shuey or (Elliot) Yeo. Their strength is being elite at that inside craft and what they produce inside is probably far better than what I can.
"So I'm happy to play different roles and be flexible for the betterment of the team and then we can get results by playing our best players inside."
Redden has averaged a career-high 26.2 disposals this season and his 4.5 clearances a game is his most since 2018, when he finished second in the Eagles' best and fairest and was named their player of the finals in the premiership campaign.
But while his season stacks up statistically as one of his best, with another placing in the John Worsfold Medal looking likely, Redden marked himself differently.
"I honestly reckon as an industry we judge someone's performance on pure stats," he said.
"The last two years I've played more outside in a sacrificial role in the corridor wing where you're not around the ball as much, so your stats come down a bit.
"But I've felt I've played my role the last two years the same as I have this year … it's just not a role dictated by stats."
The form of Redden and premiership teammate Dom Sheed, who has also stood up in the absence of West Coast's gun midfielders, now gives the Eagles enviable depth in the engine room.
They were beaten by the deepest midfield in the competition in round two when Marcus Bontempelli (30 disposals and three goals) and Jack Macrae (41 and nine clearances) overpowered them.
But with Adam Treloar and Josh Dunkley now missing from that Bulldogs team that won by seven points, and the Eagles adding Yeo and Shuey, who both missed that match, the Eagles appear in the stronger position.
"I think it's going to be an awesome match-up, but the depth we have this week is a good asset to have and I think we just need to bring our contested footy and defence," Redden said.
"When you get those sorts of calibre players back you walk a bit taller.
"We have the endurance on the outside, we have some bulls on the inside, and if we play a good brand and play some selfless footy and make each other better, I think we're in a really good position."
Asked what advice he would give a young player who wanted to develop the same selfless reputation, Redden said: "I think it's trying to make your teammates better and looking outside yourself from a young age."
Selfless acts were often rewarded at West Coast, he said, and embedding those values in the team was crucial to success.
"The sooner you work out it's not about stats and it's about a team system and everyone working together to achieve that common goal, you're going to be much more successful," Redden said. "That's what builds really good teams and cultures."
