Dom Sheed announces his retirement after missing the entire 2025 season with a knee injury.
"It has been an absolute privilege to represent the West Coast Eagles, and I will be forever grateful for the opportunity this great footy club gave a skinny kid from Kalgoorlie," Sheed said.
"To play for the club I grew up supporting has been a dream come true, but the relationships you build and memories you share from footy are what I will cherish most from my time in the game."
Dom Sheed sustains a hot spot in his foot and will be on a modified training load this pre-season, continuing a horror run with injury for the premiership hero, who will be required to wear a moonboot.
West Coast coach Adam Simpson says Dom Sheed sounded like Darth Vader after suffering a freak training accident that sent the midfielder to hospital.
"It was a warm-up drill, five v three sort of stuff that we've done every week for the past two years," Simpson said of Sheed's injury.
"It was an innocuous knock to the throat. I don't think it's a significant injury, but you lose your voice and it's pretty sore.
"I spoke to Dom on the track, and he sounded like Darth Vader. I thought, 'What's going on with you?'. He said, 'I just got a knock'. And he finished training, so it's not that bad."
After playing just one senior game in 2022, Dom Sheed will miss the rest of the season after developing a stress-related lower leg injury following his comeback game two weeks ago.
Dom Sheed says he's satisfied with his greater consistency in 2019.
"As much as last year finished off well, I wasn't happy with my season," he said.
"I was in and out of the team. Individually, I knew what I needed to do to get better and I really was just hungry to be a consistent performer for the football club."
In 2019, Sheed ranks top three at West Coast for disposals, clearances and inside 50s, has booted 15 goals.
"You look at the elite midfielders in the competition, week-in, week-out they're performing and their playing good, consistent footy," Sheed said.
"There's not a big gap between their best and worst. That's a level I want to get to, and I've still got a bit of work to do in that space."
Dom Sheed has been the toast of WA since his life-changing goal in the 2018 Grand Final.
"Perth, how small it is, they're footy mad. They just love it. The amount of happiness that you can bring to family, friends, fans was probably the thing that hit me the most," he said.
"(I get stopped in the street) a bit, and that's why it's so hard to let go of last year, the premiership and what we were able to achieve.
"But we've got to find ways to move on with it, it's 2019 now. We'll take a lot of confidence out of what we did in 2018 but we've got to get on with it."
Dom Sheed kicks the premiership-winning goal for the Eagles against Collingwood in the 2018 Grand Final.
With 1:47 remaining on the clock, Sheed converted a set shot in the Eagles' forward pocket to give his side a four-point lead, with the Eagles then going on to win the match by five points.
Sheed also gathered 32 disposals (15 contested) and had eight clearances in a dominant performance for his side.
A long-term suspension to Andrew Gaff has opened the door for Dom Sheed to solidify his place in the Eagles' line up as they advance through September.
Sheed has averaged 27.5 disposals in the past four matches, highlighted by a career-best September display against Collingwood.
"I'm not going to be an All Australian, club champion Andrew Gaff, but I just wanted to come back in and play my role for the team and just be as predictable as I could," Sheed said.
Sheed says being sent back to the WAFL may have been what he needed.
"It's a massive emotional rollercoaster when you're in your fifth year and you get sent back to the WAFL," he said.
"It plays on your mind a fair bit with your confidence, but you've got to try to park all of that and just play your role for the team.
"I worked on my whole game. I wasn't necessarily playing badly, I just wasn't playing to the standard of what the other midfielders were playing and someone had to be squeezed, and it was me."
Out-of-favour onballer Dom Sheed admits feeling frustrated since losing his spot in West Coast's finals-bound side.
Sheed had a quiet game after the bye, finding only 11 disposals in the loss to Sydney at the SCG and hasn't been seen at AFL level since.
"I just need to work on finding some touch and just really getting some confidence in my game," Sheed said.
"I'm working really hard on my defensive side, but at the same time I still want to find the footy and have an impact, because that's when I'm playing my best footy."
Dom Sheed and Jackson Nelson each sign two-year contract extensions that will keep them at West Coast until the end of 2019.
"We're obviously very happy that both Dominic and Jackson have committed to the club for the next few years, having both taken their games to another level this season," Eagles football manager Craig Vozzo said.
"They're both important parts of the club's future and we're excited with where they can take their careers.
Dom Sheed tallies 23 touches – seven contested – while booting two crucial goals to help the Eagles to an eight-point win over the Bulldogs.
However, the 22-year-old says he isn't taking his spot for granted after WAFL stints earlier this season.
"I've been inconsistent this year and obviously I've got a lot of areas of my game that I need to work on," Sheed said.
"Spots in the team are tough at the moment. We've got a healthy list so what match committee decides is what they decide, but it's just pleasing to be back in and playing my role."
Dom Sheed has become the first Eagle since 2011 to earn a NAB Rising Star nomination following a strong performance against Adelaide in round 15.
Sheed gathered 26 disposals and kicked a goal in the Eagles' 56-point win over the Crows.
Sheed, 20, has averaged 24 disposals and a goal across the past three weeks. In just his second season, Sheed said his physical development over the past two years had given him the ability to stay in games for longer.
"I think I'm not getting worn out as much as my first year," Sheed said.
"I think I've just built up more stamina and strength so I can play out games a bit better.
"One of my goals was to get stronger so I can win more contested footy and play my role.
"And I've done that so I think that's why I can last for longer in games at the moment."
Dominic Sheed makes his AFL debut for West Coast with 3 disposals (a kick and 2 handballs) and a tackle in a 65-point win over the Western Bulldogs.
Thursday, 6 February 2014
Scott Selwood says he believes Dom Sheed has a physique that's ready made for AFL.
"Dom's a guy with a big build who can come in and is ready-built for AFL footy," Selwood said.
"He's still got a lot to learn in terms of game-plan and structure and things like that but in terms of his attitude and the way he goes about it is first-class."