AFLW best and fairest Ebony Marinoff concedes league yet to ‘nail’ perfect season window

Reigning AFLW best-and-fairest Ebony Marinoff has conceded the league is yet to “nail” the perfect season start date and has thrown up her own idea which would impact the AFL fixture. HAVE YOUR SAY.

Adelaide star Ebony Marinoff has revealed the “brutal” exit meetings following the team’s heartbreaking loss in the AFLW preliminary final.

The Crows led Brisbane at half time in the penultimate game of the season but kicked just one second-half goal as the Lions stomed home to claim a 28-point victory.

It marked the third-straight preliminary final exit for Adelaide, having lost to North Melbourne and the Lions in the previous two seasons.

Marinoff, who had a strong performance with 30 touches, said the meetings after the loss were “brutal”.

“Coming over to Melbourne (for W Awards), we had a few All Australians and myself winning the medal, it took a little bit of dust off it for a couple of days,” she said.

“But then certainly going back to the footy club, doing the exits and having the team meeting was pretty brutal.

“(It was) disappointing and not where you want to be.”

Adelaide was active in the off-season in an attempt to remain in the premiership window despite the dominance from North Melbourne and Brisbane, signing Hannah Ewings from Port Adelaide and Grace Kelly from St Kilda.

Ewings, a 20-year-old who was taken with the No.3 pick in 2022, already won a club best and fairest, Rising Star and was the Power’s equal goal kicking leader in her first season of AFLW.

Marinoff said the club’s off-season had the players buoyant about a strong 2025 campaign.

“We’ve made a few list changes in the off-season,” she said.

“(We’ve added) a bit of speed, which we lacked against Brisbane Lions and have been over the last couple of years.

“Hopefully injecting that holds us in good stead.”

Ebony Marinoff is optimistic about the Crows making a premiership tilt in 2025.

The league is set to shift its starting dates again in 2025, having moved away from the pre-finals bye in the men’s competition to fit an extra round of football in the fixture.

Marinoff said the current structure could use some tweaking.

“I don’t know if there’s a perfect window, we probably haven’t quite nailed that,” she said.

“I certainly think moving it a little bit earlier away from the November and December is a good one.

“I think after the men’s season it kind of takes its toll on all footy fans.

“I’d like to see it played in June or July but I have to wait until August until I will get the boots on.”

There has been angst over the right time to start the AFLW season.

Marinoff said a potential AFL mid-season bye could be an option to launch the season in clear air, with the season then ending during the pre-finals bye of the men’s competition.

“I think potentially have a (men’s) mid-season bye where we have an opening round and then we finish up maybe when the boys have their bye round before finals,” she said.

“I am not running AFL but we haven’t quite nailed that perfect time.

“Hopefully in the next couple of years when we start adding some rounds and playing everyone once, hopefully, one day soon, we can really start setting the AFLW season in stone.”

Originally published as AFLW best and fairest Ebony Marinoff concedes league yet to ‘nail’ perfect season window