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Oscar Allen and Liam Duggan have been appointed as West Coast's joint-leaders following the retirement of former captain Luke Shuey at the end of last season.

West Coast have appointed co-captains for just the second time in the AFL club's history, with Oscar Allen and Liam Duggan named as joint successors to Luke Shuey.

The duo's selection was ratified by the club's board this week.

It is the first time since 2001 when Dean Kemp and Ben Cousins were joint leaders that the Eagles have had co-captains.

The move comes as West Coast attempt to lift themselves off the bottom of the ladder after a disastrous two seasons during which they have managed just five wins.

Tom Barrass will continue as West Coast vice-captain after rejecting a big-money move to Sydney.

Fellow defender Jeremy McGovern has stepped down from his leadership role as he focuses on his own game, having battled injuries over the last four seasons.

"We're not forcing it. It just felt right," Eagles coach Adam Simpson said of the decision to go with co-captains.

"And with Tom Barrass as our vice-captain, it just complements it really well.

"He (Barrass) is probably our spiritual leader with how he goes about it, and these guys (Allen and Duggan) can represent the club when they need to at the right time, and bounce off each other."

Allen and Duggan are the 13th and 14th captains in West Coast's 37-year history.

They take over from 2018 premiership hero Shuey, who retired at the end of last season after 248 games.

Allen, 24, led the Eagles' goal-kicking with 53 majors last season and finished runner-up to Tim Kelly in the club champion award.

"It's a bit overwhelming," Allen said of being appointed captain.

"It's a massive honour and I'm excited to do it with Duggo.

"I think we bounce off each other well and I'm excited what we can do together."

Duggan came third in the club's 2023 best and fairest award - his third top-five finish in the past four seasons - and has become a reliable defender over 158 games.

West Coast are in the midst of the biggest rebuild in the club's history and Duggan has noticed the shift in energy already.

"It's a fresh start for the group with 22 players under 21 (years of age)," Duggan said.

"The co-captain is something new as well. It's a great platform for us to continue to build now.

"We'll really hone in on the energy that these blokes are bringing.

"We're already seeing at training - it's been a hot start. It probably looks different to years gone by."

West Coast are still also riding the wave of positive energy from snaring Harley Reid with the No.1 pick in the national draft.