The Doc has his finger on the pulse of the AFLW. Here are his Likes and Dislikes from Round Two
LIKES
Power on at the MCG
There was a lot to like about the Power last week in the Showdown against flag fancies Adelaide. But this week against the Western Bulldogs was a golden opportunity to put a hapless side to the sword and send a little message to the rest of the competition.
Along with Hawthorn and perhaps Fremantle, they’ll be the big improvers in 2024. They out-hustled the Dogs in the contested ball (+7), tackled ferociously (+18 tackles) and were able to make them pay heavily on the turnover.
On a night where Gemma Houghton and Ash Saint were kept to one goal between them, Julia Teakle stood up in the forward 50 on her way to a personal best four-goal haul. Piper Window (11 disposals, four marks and eight tackles) showed why she was a highly-rated draft prospect and why Port was stoked to land her.
Cheyenne Hammond (14 disposals, four marks) was slick on the wing, Kirsty Lamb popped up with two goals in her first match against her former side and there were lots to like from Sachi Syme, Molly Brooksby and Matilda Scholz all from this game.
The only downside was a knee injury to captain Janelle Cuthbertson, which will likely see her off for the season – a big blow if that is the case.
Ally’s record day
Brisbane needed a response after being blown apart last weekend by North Melbourne, but coming into Casey Fields against Melbourne, it was a massive mountain, given the Demons’ positive record at home.
Well, the Lions were never going to cough the game up this week. They had a clear directive to strangle Melbourne’s ball movement from the get-go, and Ally Anderson was at the forefront of their offensive assault all game long.
She broke the league record of most disposals for a game, set by North Melbourne’s Ash Riddell in the final round of the home and away season in season six. Anderson had to wait until the end of the game for it to be verified by the stats people, but she eventually got credited with 43 disposals.
Even though she’s a competition-best and fairest winner, the fact that some still elect to have her in the ‘underrated’ players category is an insult to Ally. She’s pound-for-pound one of the best midfielders in the game, an elite two-way runner and she’s started the year off superbly.
15 clearances last week in a smashing against an elite North Melbourne midfield is impressive, but this performance was just as good: 43 disposals, 22 contested possessions, 600 metres gained, seven clearances, seven tackles and six marks.
Record day for the Hawks
Hok Ball is all the rage at the moment in the men’s game. Seeing it first-hand on Friday night, it’s built on pressure, daring through the middle of the ground and embracing arrogance when it’s time to go.
Hawthorn’s women’s team are building something special of their own. Call it their rendition of Hok Ball if you must, but they’re building a brand on the back of forcing turnovers and making them pay with speed in their ball movement.
The Hawks were +30 in the uncontested ball on Saturday and were well on top of the Pies in the tackle count as well – laying 74 tackles to 65, and it resulted in their highest score ever since entering the competition, as well as their greatest ever winning margin.
It’s perhaps made even more impressive because Emily Bates was a late withdrawal in this game. Whilst the Pies’s depth is crumbling, the Hawks’s depth is showing that there’s plenty to work with. Mackenzie Eardley (14 disposals and 456 metres gained) took her opportunity with both hands.
Although that depth will be tested this week. Casey Sherriff looks likely to be out at least for the foreseeable future with a suspected lower leg injury, and Aine McDonagh was nursing her elbow in the third term, suggesting she could be out for a while as well.
Everyone knew just how good Jasmine Fleming was on debut, but this could be the season that she elevates herself into the elites – she had 19 disposals, 544 metres gained, five clearances, five intercept possessions and three score involvements.
Aileen Gilroy (two goals, 11 disposals and seven score involvements) has enjoyed a fine start to the year, while Mikayla Williamson on debut (eight disposals and a goal) showed lots of bright spots.
The Bombers bounce back
Given the performance last week and the injury to Bonnie Toogood, many were asking the question of the Eagles by how much.
But instead, Essendon dug deep and they responded to their shock loss, setting up their win with four of the first five goals in the opening half.
The question was asked who would help kick a winning score this week.
They found likely types in Emily Gough and Lily-Rose Williamson. Chloe Adams on debut looked like she could be a really good player in the forward half: smart, and also has a tough approach to the contest.
Essendon kicked four of their six goals from intercepts, their ability to press really forcing the Eagles into making basic turnovers. The Eagles showed some fight and got within a kick, but the Bombers stuck to the guns and got the win they needed interstate.
Their work around stoppage was first-rate too. Steph Cain (14 disposals, 11 contested possessions and six clearances) had a much better performance this week, and helped Georgia Nanscawen (25 disposals and six clearances) and Maddy Prespakis (27 disposals and 354 metres gained) in securing the ball in their forward half.
The performance of Maddy Gay was also mighty impressive. 24 disposals, 11 contested possessions, 15 intercept possessions and a whopping 789 metres gained coming out of the backline. She was huge in this game and showed just why the Bombers sought her out; she’s not just tough to beat, but her sharp play around congestion was important in this one.
Guerin with the Goods
After a disappointing round one against the Hawks, the Blues were seeking heroes to conquer the Gold Coast up in Mackay.
Maddy Guerin stepped up for this one – after missing a shot on goal in the opening two minutes, and then another two during the third term, she saved her best kick for the last 90 seconds of the game, where she had a quick snap for goal that only marginally cleared the goal line.
Guerin has been one of many hard-luck stories in this competition, having suffered multiple knee injuries – three ACL injuries in five years – and only just starting to find her way back in the AFLW system, having played 13 games for Carlton’s VFLW side earlier in the year.
All the hard work and all the tough stints at state level, I’m sure 100 out of 100 will tell you coming back from season-ending injuries to kick a game-winning goal is worth it.
The rest of her performance wasn’t too bad either. Yes, 1.3 is pretty shabby in front of the sticks, but she had seven score involvements, which also included a goal assist, as well as 12 touches, four clearances and seven tackles, with four of those being tackles inside attacking 50, just highlighting how good her defensive pressure is inside the forward half.
Mikayla Bowen
When Mikayla Bowen was introduced to the AFLW as an expansion signing, the Eagles sung her praises to the hilt. During her stint at the Eagles, we saw plenty of great things, including a 2021 All Australian Squad spot.
However, since moving across to Geelong, we’re seeing her development as one of the best balanced wingers rise and rise at a rapid rate.
Her goal late in the Cats’ draw with North Melbourne to tie the scores up with four minutes to go was a beauty – in the tough conditions, she was placed adjacent to the boundary and found enough carry to see it over the line from 25 metres out.
The football gods stiffed her earlier in that last term, when her kick for goal bounced at the top of the square and refused to bounce through, allowing Libby Birch to get back and help clear the ball out.
But, that’s football sometimes. The rest of her game was nearly fautless given the conditions, her work at ground level was smooth and handled the ball as if it was a dry afternoon – half of her 18 disposals were contested possessions and also picked up 326 metres gained and three clearances playing predominantly wing.
Two in a row from the Saints
The Saints have had two very impressive weeks to start the year. Just some 12 months earlier many (including yours truly, were asking the question about Nick Dal Santo and whether or not he could bring this team results.
Against one of last year’s big improvers, they dominated them in territory from the opening bounce, and in trying conditions at Moorabbin, managed six scores from 11 inside 50 entries in the opening term, the only thing that let them down was accuracy, and they did miss some gettable shots, weather or otherwise.
But they converted their opportunities after quarter time, putting through six goals in the final three terms without blemish, while the Swans could only muster 1.2 in the first three quarters on the back of more inside 50 entries.
Jaimee Lambert (21 disposals, four marks and five clearances) and Tyanna Smith (20 disposals, one goal, five tackles and three clearances) were huge in midfield for the Saints, but it’s the emergence of Nicola Xenos that’s surprised me to start the 2024 season.
Often used as a pressure small forward, Xenos has found herself playing further up the field to start the year. At the tail-end of last year, her centre bounce numbers went up to an average of 20 per cent over the last four rounds.
Xenos has still managed good tackle numbers to start the year – five last week and eight on Sunday against the Swans.
It might be the year of the Crows
They were made to earn it last week against Port Adelaide, but the Crows dominated Fremantle around the ball and ground the Dockers into submission.
It’s dangerous to call it early, but the Crows might just be the early front-runners for the premiership. Brisbane got a good response this weekend, and North Melbourne and Geelong will be right up there you’d suspect given how intense their game was on the weekend. But the Crows have got the players humming along right now. They controlled play and used the space of Fremantle Oval to full effect: +21 in marks for this game, but it was their connection between forward and midfield that stood out in this one, having recorded 11 marks inside 50, +8 against Freo
Caitlin Gould took five of those and it could be one of the greatest aerial performances without registering a goal – she kicked two points from four shots but also had seven score involvements.
It was elementary from the midfielders – Ebony Marinoff may have pocketed another three votes from this game (31 disposals, 19 tackles, a goal and four clearances) she was in the thick of everything, and it was another typically brilliant game from Anne Hatchard (29 disposals, eight clearances and two goals).
However, I’d love to call upon the kids in this team. I think this was a career-best performance from Maddi Newman (27 disposals and six marks), as well as a career-day for Sarah Goodwin (16 disposals and eight intercept possessions).
From the most important player to the 21st picked, it’s hard to find a fault in this Crows team after two weeks.
DISLIKES
Tough initiations for the Pups
There hasn’t been a lot to like about the Dogs’ year to date – another 40-point loss to Port Adelaide, with their scoreline of 0.6.6 the first time the Dogs have gone goalless in their nine seasons of AFLW.
A lot of people know this team will be in for pain and heartache, but I believe Dogs fans just want to see the kids grow.
Kristie-Lee Weston-Turner, taken pick one in last year’s AFLW Draft has had a wretched start to her career. As a tall forward, it would always be tough pickings in a forward line that hasn’t even been put together yet.
Against GWS last weekend, she only managed just one handball in 69 per cent of game time. Against Port Adelaide on Friday night at the MCG, she had just four disposals and a mark from just a touch above 50 per cent of game time.
She’s not the only one who’s had a rough lesson. Up the other end, Cleo Buttifant got hers against Julia Teakle, with the Power key forward kicking all four of her goals against her, and showcasing her strength against a teenager.
And Elaine Grigg, god bless her attack on the footy, and 100 per cent she’s a future star, but she has got to tone it down a notch and play to the umpire’s call; that’s two weeks in a row that she’s given away a fifty-metre penalty for going off the mark before the umpire has called play on.
Big questions for the Dees
Tayla Harris and Lauren Pearce might not considered the best players on the Melbourne roster, but structurally speaking, they’re as important as anyone else.
Georgia Campbell was brought in as the number one ruck for this one, and she was admirable against Tahlia Hickie. Yes, Hickie beat her in hitouts at the end, but it was only 28 to 21. Campbell still showed presence in the air and there’s potential for her to be the number one ruck, but she needs to be more consistent around the ball when it’s in dispute.
It’s the forward line, however, that is the big question mark. The Demons went at 20 per cent efficiency going inside 50 – they had 30 inside 50s for just two goals. Brisbane had only three more entries for the entire game.
Harris may be maligned by many due to her status in the game and the fluctuating form on-field that comes with it, but she commands better key defenders and in turn, allows less pressure on the likes of Eden Zanker and Alyssa Bannan.
Zanker tried hard in the loss to the Lions, and one might think she had an ‘almost’ game; had plenty of moments where she nearly clunked the grabs and gave them looks at goal, but just didn’t stick the grabs enough, but also had enough of it at ground level to make something happen, but the Lions were superb defensively.
The big worry is Bannan, who has been out of sorts over the last six or so games, which dates back to last year. Against Brisbane this weekend, she had no score, seven touches and one mark. In game 50 of her career, it’s simply not good enough.
It warrants the question for Mick Stinear: what’s going to fix the issue? Bannan can run, she’s got a good kick on her and is so damaging with her disposals. Is it wing? Is it half-back? Is it a stint around the ball? Or is it an omission?
It could get ugly for Collingwood
When the team sheet was announced for the Pies on Thursday night, they called two of their top-up players into their emergencies. The only fit player on the Pies list who wasn’t picked to play on Saturday was Georgia Clark.
In quarters two and three, the Pies conceded 9.2 and only just managed 2.6 themselves in that period. They were outworked all game and outclassed by a Hawks team that is going to mean business this year.
What will please Sam Wright in the first two weeks as coach of the Pies is that they’re not being starved of inside 50 opportunities. Last week against the Swans they had 46 inside 50s and beat the Swans by eight. This week against the Hawks they had 27 entries and four less than their opposition.
Leaving out Clark, who was a top-10 draft selection, in the opening two weeks is confusing. This team will not get it done if the key targets inside 50 are Imogen Barnett, Eleri Morris and Sarah Sansonetti.
They’re battlers, but they can only take you so far in football. So why not, just take the plunge and put the kid in for a few weeks and see what she can produce, maybe help rectify what has been a woeful start to the year in front of the big sticks:
The Suns
That’s two losses from two starts for the year and the hopes for back-to-back finals appearances are slipping away. It’s made even worse once you realise both losses have been at home, which makes it all the more frightening to imagine how they’ll fare once they hit the road.
Against the Blues on Sunday, Gold Coast lost out in a lot of metrics that would’ve stood up for them in 2023: They were -14 in ground balls, -7 in clearances and -18 in contested possessions.
And that’s despite Charlie Rowbottom playing one of the best games of her career. If it felt like she was doing a truckload of the work, you’re probably right – 35 disposals, 10 marks, 10 tackles and seven clearances – if she wasn’t in and under, she was looking to be the next outlet pass.
Lucy Single and Claudia Whitfort were also really solid in the midfield, but it’s those around who are letting them down, particularly forward of the ball – 11 players registered just three contested possessions or fewer.
Among that list include Ella Maurer, Lauren Bella, Clara Fitzpatrick, Jamie Stanton and Jordan Membrey, players that you’d think would have been in the game long enough to show the fight when the opportunity presents itself.
Chloe Molloy’s Knee
It was a strange way to go about it, the club reported around an hour before Sydney’s clash with St Kilda that Chloe Molloy was to be a late out due to ‘knee soreness’. That was then changed about 15 minutes later that Chloe Molloy had injured her ACL.
It’s bizarre communication that the Swans hid that from not just the media, but the playing group. But in the case of the latter, it’s understandable why. If I was a player who found out on game day that my captain ruptured his ACL at training a few days earlier, it’d be pretty hard to stay focused and motivated.
The Swans looked hardly focused in the first half, they made basic errors, looked lost going forward of centre and up until the last term, hardly looked likely to kick a winning score.
So now, with Molloy out for the season, who’s going to stand up for the Swans? Up forward it needs to be more than Rebecca Privitelli. She’s been the one who has fought an uphill battle in the forward line.
What’s happened with Brooke Lochland? She just had the seven touches this week and was also a passenger the week before against Collingwood.
In the midfield, A lot of people will need to step up over the year. Tanya Kennedy has been a likely type since making her debut, she had 10 tackles and six clearances against the Saints and could be poised. Montana Ham will have opportunities, and Hayley Bullas is another one who could be in for a stint in the midfield, given she showed her toughness in this one.
GWS have failed the test
They were mighty impressive last week, but that was against a team that won’t win a game this year. Richmond was the litmus test to see where the Giants stood among the rest of the league.
We got our answer at half-time. The Giants will grow this year, but they are not yet close enough to being around the top half of the competition. Richmond blew them apart with their ability to close off exits and being able to convert entries into opportunities.
The only thing that saved GWS in this game was the poor kicking from the Tigers – 10 scoring shots from 19 inside 50 entries should’ve seen a convincing win from the Tigers.
The Giants got points for the fight back, and they ended up being +17 in the tackle count, which shows they worked hard enough around the contest, but they, unfortunately, fell in a few areas, and the slack was carried by too few – often a common theme in Giants losses over the years.
Make no mistake about the Giants. There’s a lot of excitement around their younger players and there’s a lot to love around their recruits. But unfortunately, this performance indicates they will be making up the numbers again in 2024.
… and so have Freo
This one is perhaps far more disappointing, given how well Fremantle locked down Essendon the week previous.
Against Adelaide this weekend, the Dockers couldn’t get anything clicking in their forward half, they were -15 in the inside 50 count and went goalless for the first time since round eight of season seven.
For a lot of their offensive chains, it worked in the favour of the Crows defenders – Chelsea Randall, Sarah Goodwin and Jess Allan combined for nine of their 20 intercept marks, and to further compound that, four of Adelaide’s five goals were conducted from turnover, which shows the Dockers were shocking with the ball in hand, and slow off the mark to defend the ball.
For as much as we lament the defensive capabilities in transition, the forward line needs to be put under a microscope. Aine Tighe was double-teamed well by Zoe Prowse and Sarah Allan and only managed one shot on goal for one behind, and one score involvement.
It was an issue last year for them as well and whilst they got looks by way of Laura Pugh and Ebony Antonio (two shots each), that’s still not going to cut the mustard against better teams in the competition.
There was a positive out of the Dockers and that’s the development of Maddy Scanlon – yes she made her share of mistakes, but had 13 intercept possessions and formed a good tandem with Emma O’Driscoll.
You’d hate to imagine what the margin could’ve been without those two.
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