AFLW has growing pains but patience is needed after rapid expansion
The AFLW season-opener produced just one goal in a half of footy, and there’s going to be more matches like it in a rapidly expanded fledgling competition. We need to temper expectations and give the game time to grow, writes Chris Cavanagh.
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The growing pains are real for AFLW.
You had to look no further than the first half of Friday night’s season opener between Richmond and Carlton to see that.
One of four new teams entering the competition this year, the Tigers went into the main break with just two behinds to their name from a measly four inside-50s.
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The Blues – grand finalists in 2019 – had kicked just 1.8 themselves, despite dominating with 22 entries into their scoring arc.
It was a fierce contest and there were some moments of brilliance – particularly from two young Carlton rising stars in Madison Prespakis and Lucy McEvoy.
But for the most part it was not particularly pretty footy.
And given the AFLW’s rapid expansion – Gold Coast, St Kilda and West Coast are also new teams this year after North Melbourne and Geelong joined last season – there might be a few more halves like it to come.
“I think it does take a bit of getting in and embedding a club into the competition and I know that Geelong and North Melbourne saw that last year,” AFLW boss Nicole Livingstone said.
“We just need to allow Richmond to get themselves into this competition and learn what it’s all about. These are baby steps at the moment as they learn, as a club, what AFLW’s all about.
“They’ll get better from here. It’s the opening night nerves and just experiencing AFLW for the first time.”
As it often does in AFLW, scoring opened up in the second half.
The match ended up producing a combined eight goals, but Livingstone said scoring should not necessarily be the measure of a good match.
“I think we concentrate on the battle that’s taking place on field rather than thinking, ‘How can we get more scoring going’,” she said.
“Because I see the football skills there and the football skills are improving year-on-year.
“We’ve got a big first round and, importantly, we’ve gone from the first couple of years having 28 matches to having 61 matches in total. So there’s more opportunity for girls to learn the craft and hone their skills.”
Sabrina Frederick made history as Richmond’s first goalkicker in AFLW during the final quarter.
The key forward moved to Punt Rd this year after being part of the Brisbane Lions’ first AFLW game in 2017, so she knows what it is like to be part of a brand-new team.
“More than half of the team were playing their first AFLW game and I think people need to realise and respect that Carlton played in the grand final last year, they’ve played together for three years. We’re a new team,” Frederick said.
“We showed great promise in that last quarter and to do that against a team like that when you’re five goals down, I think we definitely have it in us. You know what, it might turn sooner than you think.”
BARTLETT NOT THE ONLY KB AT TIGERLAND
Richmond legend Kevin Bartlett has backed the Tigers to “equal the score” with Carlton in Round 1 of the men’s season next month after the club’s women’s team fell to the Blues in the AFLW season-opener on Friday night.
Bartlett presented jumpers to the Tigers’ AFLW players in the rooms before their first game and watched on from the stands as the “next chapter in the club’s history” was written.
“In the AFL, or VFL as it was, Richmond joined in 1908 so that’s 112 years ago and here we are now with our first women’s team playing the game against traditional rivals Carlton,” Bartlett said.
“What we saw was the start of something that will be very, very successful because the club is very well run and there was some fantastic enthusiasm in the rooms before the game and great camaraderie among the players.
“It’s the first step in a long journey for AFLW and particularly for Richmond.”
Bartlett said he could have “never” imagined during his playing days that the Tigers would have a women’s team in his lifetime, or that he would be replaced by another “KB” at Punt Rd in AFLW captain Katie Brennan.
“I got a letter from the club inviting me to go to the game and be part of the ceremony before the game and it had, ‘Attention: KB (Male)’,” Bartlett said.
“I’ve been replaced by a new KB in Katie Brennan.”
The Tigers fell to the Blues by 34 points but Bartlett said revenge would come on March 19.
“They (Carlton) have got one up on us at the moment but we’ll just have to see what happens in Round 1 of the men’s season,” Bartlett said.
“I’m sure we’ll equal up the score. We can’t have them having bragging rights.”
Bartlett has two granddaughters – Madeline and Lucinda – who both play school and local football in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs and said he would love for them to one day be able to pull on the yellow and black.
“I hope we get the grandfather-grandson and grandfather-granddaughter rule comes into the AFL, not just the father-son and father-daughter rule, because I think it would be fantastic to have that,” Bartlett said.
Originally published as AFLW has growing pains but patience is needed after rapid expansion