Adelaide star Erin Phillips wins AFLW best and fairest, named All-Australian captain

Erin Phillips has been crowned AFLW best and fairest and All-Australian skipper, capping off an utterly dominant season. Who else took home awards? Catch up on all the winners here.

Erin Phillips has again been named the best player in the competition but has revealed she turned her back on what could have been a prime opportunity to continue in the game.

Phillips, 33, romped home to claim the AFL Women’s best and fairest award – her second in three years – with two rounds of voting to spare, polling 19 votes.

But it was a sense of unfinished business that saw her return for the Crows this season, where she has scooped every accolade on offer.

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“I was asked to potentially interview for the Dallas Wings head coaching job after our current coach was fired,” Phillips said.

“That would have meant not playing AFLW, and I politely declined.

“That (job) was obviously not guaranteed … but I wasn’t going to risk not playing AFLW. I just wasn’t ready to be done.”

In a stirring acceptance speech, Phillips said her achievements served as an opportunity to “stick it up” those she said “felt sorry” for her father Greg – who played for Port Adelaide and Collingwood – who had three daughters, “because he didn’t have a son to play footy someday and carry the Phillips name”.

Erin Phillips celebrates her premiership with the Crows. Picture: Getty Images

“They’re people that don’t really matter,” she said.

“As a young kid, it’s just something that you don’t really understand or should even have to hear. It’s not something both my parents should have to be told or be joked about.

“Those jokes don’t go around now because of AFLW.

“My dad has always loved his three girls … we never, ever felt like Dad missed out in any way. He kicked the footy with us, shot baskets out the front.”

Fremantle’s Dana Hooker finished second (11 votes) and Melbourne’s Karen Paxman third (10).

Described as “the benchmark of the competition” by league boss Gillon McLachlan, Phillips ruptured her ACL in Sunday’s grand final victory over Carlton and said the experience was “one of the best days and the worst in one”.

Having been through a knee reconstruction on her other leg 12 years ago, she knows “it’s not fun”, and said no decision had been made on her playing future.

The reconstruction will be a traditional surgery which is expected to take place “probably next week”, but she would not make any call based on the current emotion.

“I’ll be 34 next month and I think the bigger picture is figuring out how to chase three kids soon,” Phillips said.

“I’ll rehab, I’ll do everything I can. If I get back up and play, great, but if not, I’ll be pretty bloody happy to finish on that note.”

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Erin Phillips has been crowned AFLW All-Australian skipper as she weighs up the next move in her injury recovery.

The Crows co-captain travelled to Melbourne to receive the honour as she awaits a knee reconstruction on her “good leg” after rupturing her ACL in Adelaide’s grand final win over Carlton on Sunday.

Her fellow Adelaide skipper Chelsea Randall was anointed her deputy, while 12 players from Victorian clubs were selected.

Phillips, 33, was assessed by doctors on Monday and was hotly-tipped to win her second league best and fairest medal.

Emerging star Madison Prespakis was the only first-year player named having made an immediate impact on the competition after she was drafted by the Blues with pick three in last year’s draft.

Erin Phillips has scooped the AFLW awards pool this season, named All-Australian skipper. Picture: Getty Images

Prespakis, who was favourite to take out Tuesday night’s Rising Star award after earning nomination in Round 2, last week told the Herald Sun that individual recognition was not something she had sought.

“I just like playing footy,” she said.

“Whether it comes along with awards, that’s great, but other than that I don’t really care if there was no awards coming with it.

“With the hard work that I’ve put in, it’s good to get those accolades along the way, but I don’t really base my game off them and try to impress anyone.”

Melbourne’s Lauren Pearce was rewarded with the prized ruck spot playing every match of the Demons’ season with an average of 20 hitouts per game.

Code-hopper Ash Brazill — who splits her time between netball and AFLW — was Collingwood’s only representative after her breakout season in defence, with resurgent Cat Meg McDonald named alongside her in the All-Australian backline.

“It’s an amazing honour — it’s strange to even be using words like that,” McDonald told the Herald Sun when she was named in the initial squad.

Maddy Prespakis has dominated in the Carlton midfield this season, despite being new to the competition. Picture: Alex Coppel

“I’ve always looked to the girls in the All-Australian team as almost in another league, but then I think as I’ve tried to get myself back into the league and then perform well, I appreciate more and more that it is just about hard work, good communication with the club and being in an environment that allows you to perform.

“I always believed that I had the ability to play AFLW. For it to have gone this well is a bit of a bonus.”

AFLW All Australian team.