West Coast coach John Worsfold believes ego is the only thing at stake in the club's attempt to avoid their first ever AFL wooden spoon.

The Eagles sit one win adrift of 15th-placed Richmond and are now hot favourites to finish last on the table - a horrible prospect for a club accustomed to success.

Three weeks ago Worsfold was adamant his side would avoid the dreaded wooden spoon.

But the premiership coach has since changed his tune, claiming player development and not ladder position was the priority in the remaining eight games of the season.

"We would like to (avoid the wooden spoon) but that's only a little bit of ego, and ego's not what's really critical here," Worsfold said ahead of Saturday's clash with Adelaide in Perth.

"It's about long-term focus on where we want to get to.

"If it was a matter of bringing in some senior players just to try and win a game to get off the bottom of the ladder - that's not going to help us go forward.

"We'll go with the younger players that we think we want to keep developing and push forward even though it may cost us.

"In saying all that, we still believe we can win more games this year."

Long-term injuries to skipper Darren Glass, Daniel Kerr and Ashley Hansen robbed an already-youthful West Coast outfit of much-needed experience this season.

Beau Waters, Matt Priddis, Dean Cox, Andrew Embley and Adam Selwood have shouldered the leadership responsibilities and Worsfold conceded the role had taken a heavy toll on the few senior players still left standing.

"They're outnumbered, that's for sure, especially on match day at the moment," Worsfold said.

"But we expect them to stay focused on performing and playing their role, and don't use the fact that it's a little bit tough at the moment as an excuse not to lead strong."

Meanwhile, in the wake of Ben Cousins' health scare this week, Worsfold revealed his players were well informed about the possible dangers of using caffeine tablets to gain an on-field edge.

The use of caffeine tablets to aid sporting performance has been blasted by numerous health advisers but Worsfold, a qualified pharmacist, said his players were given all the facts to make their own decision on the issue.

"If players want to use caffeine tablets they don't supply it themselves, it's given to them with strict guidelines," Worsfold said.

"They're counselled on it, they're counselled on the effects of it, and then it's their choice."

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