Essendon's finals hopes are dangling by a thread after a handball-happy West Coast outfit notched an upset 27-point AFL victory at Subiaco Oval on Sunday.

The Bombers looked flat in the opening half and were made to pay dearly for their lacklustre start as the Eagles skipped out to a 29-point lead by the long break.

Essendon fought back in the second half and closed the gap to 13 points early in the final quarter but the Eagles kicked two late goals to seal the 14.11 (95) to 10.8 (68) win, with recalled forward Ben McKinley kicking four crucial goals.

The Bombers' third loss on the trot leaves them one game adrift of eighth-placed Port Adelaide with tough fixtures against Brisbane, St Kilda, Fremantle (away) and Hawthorn to round out the home and away season.

West Coast's fifth win of the season makes the Eagles ineligible for a priority draft selection, ending any tanking talk associated with John Worsfold's men.

Prized West Coast recruit Nic Naitanui played the best game of his fledgling career, tallying 24 hit-outs in a dominant display against Paddy Ryder in the ruck.

But it was also Naitanui's two spoils in the final quarter, one of which led to a goal to Mark LeCras, that proved critical in holding off Essendon's last-quarter charge.

Young Eagles midfielder Tom Swift (23 possessions, two goals) also enjoyed a breakout game despite the odd errant disposal, while LeCras (26 possessions, three goals) and veteran Andrew Embley (31 touches) were crucial in the win.

The Eagles finished the game with a whopping 451 disposals, 250 of them handballs.

Jay Neagle booted three goals for the Bombers and Kyle Reimers chipped in with two but the forward line looked stagnant in the absence of injured skipper Matthew Lloyd.

Jobe Watson (29 possessions) battled hard in the midfield but received little support, with Andrew Lovett restricted to just 12 touches after picking up a nasty cork to his thigh early in the game.

Eagles rookie Callum Wilson made a dream start to his AFL career, booting two goals with his first two kicks as West Coast raced out to a 20-0 lead.

Essendon were exposed through the centre corridor time and again in the opening quarter and it was a similar case in the second as the Eagles kicked four goals to two to take a handy 29-point advantage into the long break.

The Bombers dominated play during the third quarter but received little reward for their efforts, with the Eagles scoring crucial goals against the run of play to turn for home up by 25 points.

Goals to Reimers and Courtenay Dempsey early in the final quarter sparked Essendon to life but a dominant final-quarter performance from Eagles veteran Andrew Embley and some deft touches from Naitanui helped steady the Eagles.

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