Star Eagles onballer Daniel Kerr received a three-week suspension for head-butting Bulldog veteran Scott West, an incident the 2006 premiers say was provoked by the close-checking Kerr received early on.
However, Eade revealed he wasn't expecting West Coast and their coach John Worsfold – who said in the post-match press conference that Kerr had been "smashed" – to be so blunt.
"It was ... a bit surprising, but anyway, that's a part of the game" Eade said on Thursday.
"I didn’t see anything untoward. Daniel Kerr got five free kicks, I think that’s a fair ratio of free kicks from the umpire.
"But I didn’t see Matthew (Boyd) do anything that was outside the rules."
Eade said the club’s complaints about Scott West in 2007 came after a prolonged period of targeting from opposition taggers.
"I think it's more about highlighting the protection of their own players, and I think all coaches do it – we did it last year with Scott West," he said.
"Scott's had it his whole career and that seems to be a tactic to stop the main ball players, but forwards have coped with it for a long time.
"They've had defenders sitting on them the whole time, so I don't think it's anything new."
And Eade admitted that forwards are now getting their own back under the current rules.
"I think the balance has swung around in favour of the forwards, there’s no doubt about that now, with the holding of arms and hands in the back," Eade said.
"As far as holding or restricting or retarding players, it should be the same for midfielders as it is for forwards and it should be interpreted the same way.
"The only one that should be different is the midfield, where you can have hands on the back, so long as you don’t push them."
The Bulldogs face a tough test to keep their unbeaten record intact this weekend, with a trip to the SCG for a date with the Sydney Swans.
Eade said the club has endured far from an easy run this season and is embracing every challenge.
"Adelaide are a very good side and we played then in round one, so that was a good test because you’d be thinking Adelaide would be after a top four berth," he said.
"St Kilda are probably down a little bit at this stage but we hadn’t beaten St Kilda for a long time, so I think we’ve had a few tests along the way.
"But the fact that we haven’t beaten Sydney for a while and that it’s on their home ground is going to be a big test for us."
Coach of the Swans from 1996 to 2002, Eade knows every nook and cranny of the SCG – even though the Bulldogs have lost their past five matches at the venue.
"You maybe modify your [game plan] a bit, and I suppose having coached there a bit I understand what the ground’s like," Eade said.
"But as we know with Sydney it’s going to be a very contested game, and that’s an area we’ve focused on over the summer.
"Obviously we’re going okay at the moment and hopefully that’s still the situation on Sunday."
Eade also confirmed that West and captain Brad Johnson would play after both managed to get through last weekend’s match largely unscathed, although the pair are likely to be given lighter workloads until match day.
"Johnno didn’t train during the week but he got to the line okay, and Scott is a little bit sore from the weekend but he’s not too bad," Eade said.
"We’re really confident both will be able to play."
