AFLW 2019: Round 7 in Review
Mar 18, 2019, 2:53AM
The home-and-away is all done for season 2019 as four teams look forward to finals and six other sides wonder what could have been.
GWS Giants 6.5 (41) def. Geelong 1.4 (10)
Who, What, Why: There are chokes and then there are chokes… and then, there is what Geelong produced on Friday night. The Giants have been the worst team all season, but were able to seem like world beaters against an absolutely putrid Cats outfit who had everything to play for. The usually unflappable and rock solid Geelong defence of Meg McDonald and Madi McMahon were led up the ground and then beaten back to goal, time and time again by Cora Staunton and Yvonne Bonner who were always going to play on, and kick the ball long.
In the midfield, Renee Garing tried her guts out and Liv Purcell was OK, but when Rocky Cranston went missing, they didn't have much help. Letting the likes of Alicia Eva, Bec Beeson and Alyce Parker kick short without any pressure was hard to watch from a Cats perspective - their midfield and half forward line is usually so switched on defensively.
Key Takeaway: Despite Geelong’s best efforts, they will play AFLW Finals this season. On the whole, they probably do deserve to be in the top two in Conference B, but on Friday’s form the Preliminary Final in Adelaide could be a cricket score.
The Giants have a lot of work to do on the recruiting front in the offseason to be constantly competitive in 2020.
Melbourne 1.2 (8) def. by Adelaide Crows 10.8 (68)
Who, What, Why: Hopefully you got amongst the stupid $7.50 odds for the Crows to win the AFLW Premiership after their Round 1 loss to the Western Bulldogs, because there is daylight to the next best team behind Adelaide as we get to the pointy end of the 2019 AFLW season. The Demons are a good team made to look second rate by a Crows outfit that simply has no weaknesses.
Mariana Rajcic, Sarah Allen and Chelsea Randall down back for Adelaide were particularly good, keeping one of the AFLW's fastest forward lines to just three scoring shots. The Crows forward line, in contrast, was absolutely unstoppable. Danielle Ponter, Eloise Jones, Courtney Cramey, Chloe Scheer, Jess McCormick – oh yeh, and this player named Erin Phillips - who can play a bit. They even belted the Dees at the stoppage without Anne Hatchard for the whole second half.
Key Takeaway: The Dees ran into a juggernaut that looks unlikely to be stopped this season. They are not a bad team, and with some tinkering and another VFLW season into some of their younger players who are still relatively new to footy, they will be a force again in 2020. The Dees could have played AFLW Finals with a big win on Saturday - instead they lost by ten goals, and it could have easily been more had the Crows kicked straighter.
Fremantle Dockers 7.10 (52) def. North Melbourne 4.1 (25)
Who, What, Why: Kiara Bowers, you are a superstar.
The Dockers midfielder almost single-handedly kept her team in the game early on with her defensive pressure and relentless attack on the footy. The Kangaroos were pressing, and then she stepped up another gear to wrestle the momentum the Dockers way, and from there, they never let it go. Dana Hooker was superb in the clearances, but so too was Jenna Bruton for North Melbourne. Bruton, Emma Kearney and Jamie Stanton all got their share of the ball, but it was what the Dockers did with their possession that really hurt the Kangaroos.
The Fremantle forward line was at it’s usual speedy, skilful best, and as soon as the ball went in, the Dockers were first to the footy or applying immediate tackle pressure. Jess Duffin could not impact the game, nor could the Kangaroos trio of tall marking forwards in Jasmine Garner, Kate Gillespie-Jones and Katlyn Ashmore.
Key Takeaway: After winning the first five games of the season, North Melbourne will miss the AFLW Finals with a 5-2 record, having lost their last two. They are probably the biggest ‘hard done by’ victims of the conference system, but they were also flogged by the Adelaide Crows and now the Dockers in consecutive weeks, so there is an argument to say they probably wouldn’t have factored anyway. Fremantle are thoroughly deserving AFLW finalists, and baring an absolute horror choke, should meet Adelaide in the AFLW Grand Final, and if Gemma Houghton can learn to kick straight, they are half a chance of winning it all.
Collingwood 3.7 (25) def. Brisbane Lions 2.7 (19)
Who, What, Why: All the Lions had to do to play AFLW Finals again, was beat the winless Magpies. This was not to be. The Lions came out without their kicking boots, and with only half their footy vision in place. Kicks were high, generally to a disadvantage - or, in some cases, just went directly to opponents. Emma Zielke I'm looking at you today. Ditto Lauren Arnell and Emily Bates. Collingwood, on the other hand, were more skilful, maintained possession and sweated the Lions turnovers, playing hungrier in the first quarter in particular. Why Jacqui Yorston didn’t start on Jamie Lambert I’ll never know, this cost Brisbane early momentum, which in turn cost them the game.
Sabrina Freidrick-Traub had an absolute shocker by any meaningful metric, her off-season will be particularly long, given she could - and should - have kicked her side to another AFLW Preliminary Final. She had a golden matchup with Livingstone all game, but managed just two marks for 0.2, amongst 5-6 cold drops. She should have had much better supply, but given hte hands just weren't sticking, the team kicked to Jess Wuetschner who was well held by Ash Brazill (thanks in large part, to poor delivery from the Lions midfield).
Key Takeaway: By the time Brisbane kicked into gear, they needed to be efficient, accurate and composed and the Lions were none. They have a lot of work to do in the offseason as they are carrying 3-4 players currently. The Magpies broke their duck, but still finish with the 2019 AFLW wooen spoon. They have some good young talent and will improve with another season. Hopefully you got amongst the value on offer for the Magpies that we identified in our preview on Friday!
Bulldogs 5.8 (38) defeated by Blues 6.5 (41)
Who, What, Why: This was a really ugly game, between two really disappointing sides who aren’t really too far apart from each other in 2019. Due to the conference system, one of those will play AFLW Finals and one will finish dead last in their pool. Talent wise, the Bulldogs have the Blues well and truly covered, but Carlton play this scrappy, hack-it-forward type game, with patches of composed skill from Madi Prespakis and Georgia Gee.
The Western Bulldogs have quite a few tough decisions to make about half a dozen players on their list - and probably a further half dozen in terms of their best position on the field. Would have liked to see them give Eleanor Brown some time on-ball and I’d love to see Katie Brennan play behind the ball at center half back, with a license to intercept.
Key Takeaway: Mon Conti is going to tear AFLW 2020 apart, and the Blues’ AFLW Finals campaign will be short lived.
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