Claremont AFLW draft hopeful Juliet Kelly breaks WAFLW disposal record with 48 touches
Jack Schwarze says every AFL club that misses out on Juliet Kelly will rue their mistake after the Claremont star pressed her draft claims by shattering the WAFLW disposals record.
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Code-hopping AFLW draft hopeful Juliet Kelly won’t be flying under the radar for much longer after producing a record-breaking WAFLW game for Claremont.
The 17-year-old midfielder broke the record for the most disposals in a WAFLW game, finishing with a whopping 48 against East Perth in last Saturday’s 67-point win.
Kelly soared past the previous record of 39 set by Sydney AFLW draftee and East Fremantle product Zippy Fish back in round seven last year. Kelly wasn’t the only Tiger to pass the record, with fellow midfielder and former Eagle/Docker Matilda Sergeant finishing with 44 disposals.
Remarkably, AFLW clubs have been slow to express interest in Kelly, who has also represented Australia in rowing. But this latest accolade is sure to see Kelly climbing up draft boards after she showed off her full range, also racking up 10 tackles, nine clearances, six inside 50s and a goal.
“We don’t really look at individual statics regularly during the game but this was jumping off the page,” Claremont coach Jack Schwarze told this masthead.
“With about six minutes to go in the game, she came off for a rotation. (Injured midfielder) Jayme Harken was sitting in the box, and she said, ‘JK is sitting on 41 touches right now.’ At the time, we thought the record was 42.
“Immediately, we went into disposal watch. I was on the phone to my bench coach saying ‘Get JK back on!’ We were riding it anytime she got near the ball.
“East Perth kicked a point and jokingly I told the bench to get JK to do the kick-outs. Then she got on the end of it and we all cheered. We were also trying to get Tildi another touch because she was going to break it too.
“She finished the game on the live Champion Data stats with 43 or 44 disposals. But Champion Data obviously go back and make corrections so suddenly it started to go up.
“Walking into our post-game awards presentations, she was sitting on 46. And by the time we got through that, she was up to 48. So many of her touches are almost unnoticeable, quick handballs at the bottom of the pack.
“Watching her live, we thought she was about to hit the record but at that point, she’d probably already broken it.”
Kelly enjoyed a breakout game in the 2024 WAFLW grand final, tagging Fish, coincidentally the previous WAFLW disposal record holder. The Tigers prevailed by three points and Kelly polled votes in the Lou Knitter medal for best on ground.
When she returned to pre-season training, Schwarze said it was clear that Kelly was set for a crucial role in Claremont’s 2025 midfield. But a surplus of stars meant that she started the season rotating between halfback and the wing before injuries to key players opened the door for her to start on-ball.
“We knew she was ready to move on from the pure tagging role into being a midfielder in her own right,” Schwarze said. “Her bodywork and craft around stoppages and congestion is incredible.
“She keeps her feet under pressure and she’s so strong through her hips. And her ability to get her hands free and release a handpass is some of the best I’ve seen at this level.”
Kelly’s endurance is also one of her biggest assets and she’d be one of the fittest players at Claremont, if not the WAFLW.
“Her GPS numbers are off the charts,” Schwarze said. “Every week, she’s on the podium for her work rate and distance covered. She does not stop running.
“There’s a few times with our rotations we’ve needed her to play a 15-minute straight block as an inside midfielder and she just does it. She’s a diesel. She just powers on.”
While football is her priority, Kelly is also a talented rower and is currently training with WA’s state program.
She missed the AFLW National Championships last year representing Australia at the World Championships in Canada and as a consequence, AFLW clubs have been slow to take note of her talent.
“If you’re an AFLW club that misses out on Juliet Kelly, it’s your own fault,” Schwarze said. “I’m surprised that there’s not more interest.
“It might be a case of she doesn’t do flashy things like Zippy Fish, Claudia Wright or Molly O’Hehir did last year. JK doesn’t do things that catch the eye until she touches the ball 48 times in a game. But the things she does are more valuable than anyone else.
“For an AFLW club, she’ll play a role and do whatever is needed for the next 15 years. She’s a coach’s dream.”
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