AFLW: All the news and results from round 10
Sydney will play in their first AFLW finals series after a tense victory over the Dockers meant they denied the Saints a place in the final eight.
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The Swans will play AFLW finals in just their second season after a tense 22-point victory against Fremantle.
It was an incredibly tight game in the West with Sydney needing a win to book their place in the top eight.
However, this year’s biggest improvers were made to work for the result thanks to a resolute defensive performance from the Dockers.
The hosts held the lead at half time and could have been further in front if not for a controversial behind decision in the third term.
Yet it was the Swans who came home strongest, making the most of their opportunities in the final quarter with goals to Brooke Lochland, Chloe Molloy and Montana Ham ensuring they jumped above St Kilda.
A late point from the Dockers brought the Swans back from 7th to 8th, meaning they will travel to Queensland to take on the Gold Coast in an elimination final next weekend.
FREO ON THE COUNTER ATTACK
It was a clear game plan from the Dockers to absorb Sydney’s pressure before hitting them on the counter. And for two-and-a-half quarters it worked perfectly as the Swans struggled for fluidity in their attacking movement.
Fremantle capitalised when they had room to run, moving the ball with speed and finding one-up marks. At half-time, they had double the number of marks (18-9) to the Swans and were +3 on marks inside 50.
Kiara Bowers led from the front, finishing the game with a remarkable 18 tackles.
However, they weren’t able to translate that territory dominance onto the scoreboard.
Sydney’s strength for most of their day was contested ball and their stoppage work as they led the clearances at every break. Eventually, that created more scoring opportunities and they kicked away to secure their first finals appearance.
A lot of praise has to go to the Swans’ defence for their efforts in repelling the Dockers’ attack and limiting them to just three points in the second half.
Brenna Tarrant produced one of the best games of her young career, finishing with a game-high nine intercept possessions.
MOLLOY’S FOOTY IQ SHINES THROUGH
Swans co-captain Chloe Molloy has been a revelation in her first year in Sydney. She’s kicked some remarkable goals and lifted the standards of the teammates around her.
But for the second straight week, the forward also managed to outsmart her opponent to get the Swans on the board early.
After Sydney locked the ball in their forward line, Molloy nominated for a ruck contest without the Dockers realising.
She was blocked off the ball and then received the free kick and she made no mistake from the set shot. It was the Swans’ first goal of the day and gave them a boost to shift momentum in the first term.
It’s the perfect example of what Molloy has brought to the Swans this year with a combination of skill and footy intelligence.
The 24-year-old couldn’t be kept out of the action, kicking her second of the day in the final term to open up a 16-point lead for her side and all but secure their spot in the top eight.
SWANS IN ANOTHER GOAL UMPIRE CONTROVERSY
The Swans’ men’s team benefited from a controversial goal umpiring decision to book their place in the finals this season and history repeated itself for their AFLW counterparts.
In the third quarter, the Dockers streamed forward and looked as though they had kicked their third goal of the game through Makaela Tuhakaraina.
However, the ball hit the goal umpire and ended up rebounding back into the field of play. After a short deliberation, the umpires eventually awarded a point as they felt the ball was going to hit the post. Replays suggested otherwise with Dockers fans at the ground incredulous.
It proved costly with the Swans going up the other end minutes later to kick a goal through Rebecca Privitelli to re-take the lead.
Thankfully, the call didn’t prove costly as Sydney ran away with the game in the final term.
A big decision here costs Fremantle what appeared to be a goal. A big moment in the context of this game and finals race.
— Fox Footy (@FOXFOOTY) November 5, 2023
Reminder: A Sydney win will likely earn them a finals spot over St Kilda.
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MATCH DETAILS
FREMANTLE 1.1, 2.3, 2.4, 2.6 (18)
SYDNEY 1.4, 1.5, 2.7, 5.10 (40)
MCKIRDY’S BEST:
Fremantle – Bowers, East, Runnalls, Pugh, Strom
Sydney – Tarrant, Gardiner, Molloy, Steane, Kennedy
GOALS:
Fremantle – O‘Sullivan (1), Runnalls (1)
Sydney – Molloy (2), Privitelli (1), Lochland (1), Ham (1)
INJURIES: Nil
UMPIRES: Matt Adams, Courtney Gibson and Sam Morgan
GROUND: Fremantle Oval
Pies capitulation hands finals spot to Dons
Collingwood has crashed and burned in its late bid to make the AFLW finals after the Magpies were destroyed by Richmond to the tune of 52 points at Victoria Park on Sunday.
After woeful accuracy prevented Richmond from leading at half-time, the Tigers were undeterred and kicked the last nine goals, including seven in a devastating final quarter, to career to an 11.11 (77) to 4.1 (25) victory while keeping the hosts to one behind in the second half.
The Magpies started the game in 10th spot with a percentage of 95.0 and a game behind eighth-placed St Kilda (102.3), who defeated Carlton earlier in the day at Ikon Park.
To have a chance of making the finals, Collingwood not only had to beat the Tigers, who were already out of the finals race, but also had to make up 7.3 per cent on the Saints.
But they failed spectacularly in their mission and didn’t look anything like a side that understood the gravity of the situation. In fact, Richmond appeared as though they were the team that was still a chance of finishing in the top eight, and if it wasn’t for their appalling goalkicking prior to the last quarter, they would have won by a lot more.
Ironically, it was Richmond who achieved the massive percentage boost, climbing from 86.2 to 100.8, to finish above Collingwood on the ladder, as they recorded both their highest ever AFLW score and biggest ever win.
Mon Conti.
— AFL Women's (@aflwomens) November 5, 2023
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DONS QUALIFY, SAINTS AND SWANS ALIVE
The result guaranteed Essendon a spot in the finals in just their second season, meaning the Saints and Swans are the two remaining teams chasing the last top-eight spot.
St Kilda (eighth, 102.3) are a game clear of Sydney (ninth, 101.9) who play Fremantle in the final game of the home-and-away season in Perth.
For the Saints to qualify, they either need the Swans to lose or win by a small enough margin that will prevent them from overtaking their percentage.
In order for Sydney to play finals, the equation is simple – beat the Dockers and bridge the minuscule percentage gap of 0.4 on the Saints.
Richmond’s impressive performance capped off a disappointing season for them on a high note as they failed to make the finals with a 5-5 record after finishing in the top four last season with eight wins.
CONTI, BRENNAN SHINE
Star Richmond duo Monique Conti and Katie Brennan finished 2023 on a high note.
Conti was spectacular in the middle of the ground as she registered 34 disposals (17 contested), 11 clearances, eight tackles and a goal in one of the most complete games she’s ever played.
And Brennan was sensational up forward, ending up with 18 possessions, six marks and four goals.
Eilish Sheerin was also prolific with 24 touches (17 contested), seven tackles and six clearances.
But the highlight of the day came from Caitlin Greiser deep in the final quarter as she submitted a very late goal-of-the-year contender when she somehow threaded the eye of a needle with the outside of her boot from right up against the behind post and with Collingwood’s Stacey Livingstone hot on her tail.
Scoreboard
MAGPIES 2.0, 4.0, 4.0, 4.1 (25)
TIGERS 0.3, 2.8, 4.9, 11.11 (77)
LERNER’S BEST Magpies: Sheridan, Davey, Brazzale, Cann, Frederick. Tigers: Conti, Brennan, Sheerin, Egan, Dempsey, Shevlin.
GOALS Magpies: Morris-Dalton 2, Brazill, Smith. Tigers: Brennan 4, Greiser 2, D’Arcy, S.Hosking, Yassir, Jones, Conti.
INJURIES Magpies: Nil. Tigers: Jones (arm).
UMPIRES Ball, Lyon, Talbot
VENUE Victoria Park
Some heated scenes close to the siren between Collingwood and Richmond 😮
— Fox Footy (@FOXFOOTY) November 5, 2023
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Saints take huge step toward finals berth
- Ronny Lerner
St Kilda has taken a big step towards a maiden AFLW finals series after it overcame a wasteful Carlton outfit by 20 points at Ikon Park on Sunday.
But if the Saints feature in an elimination final next weekend, they will do so without star forward/ruck Jesse Wardlaw who was concussed after she was collected heavily by Carlton’s Keeley Sherar.
Both players contested a loose ball with just four minutes left in the match, and Wardlaw came off second best from the collision. She lay stunned and supine on the ground for a minute or so before trudging from the field.
“If we are fortunate enough to play next week, Jesse won’t be playing. It was a big hit,” coach Nick Dal Santo said post-match.
The match began as a tense arm wrestle with both teams going goal-for-goal into the second quarter, but the Saints busted the game open with five majors in a row, including two each to Nicola Xenos and Nat Exon, before running out 7.4 (46) to 3.8 (26) winners.
Georgia Patrikios was the chief architect of the Saints’ victory as she helped herself to 25 disposals, while Jaimee Lambert (18 touches) was a human wrecking ball, laying 10 tackles.
NERVOUS WAIT FOR ST KILDA
The result provisionally moved the Saints from ninth up to eighth on the ladder, and the most straightforward way for them to hold onto their spot in the eight would be for Sydney, a game further back in ninth, to lose to Fremantle.
However, if the Swans (101.9) are victorious, they would need to win by a small enough margin so as not to overtake St Kilda’s percentage of 102.3 in order for the Saints to make the finals.
If Sydney win and surpass St Kilda’s percentage, the Saints will drop out of the top eight.
“Nerves,” Dal Santo laughed.
“If we just had have used the ball a bit better going forward, the scoreboard would’ve taken care of itself, and even in the last quarter, we had multiple opportunities and it just didn’t work out that way.
“We’re just going to sit back, catch up as a team, have some dinner, watch a couple of games of football, which is sort of a nice thing, but then within that, clearly we’re cheering for a couple of sides and not cheering for the other ones.”
CARLTON CAPITULATION COMPLETE
St Kilda’s win extinguished Carlton’s extremely faint finals hopes and capped off a disastrous second half of the season for the Blues who lost their last four games after sitting pretty in sixth spot after Round 6 with a 4-2 record.
After the Blues’ last three seasons under former coach Daniel Harford resulted in no finals action, first-year coach Mathew Buck has also failed to guide the Blues to the top eight.
Buck agreed it was an “anticlimactic” end to his team’s season.
“The game probably reflects our season a little bit ... we dropped away in the second half,” he said.
Meanwhile, in the opening minutes of the match, Carlton Irishwoman Erone Fitzpatrick appeared to suffer a serious knee injury and, worryingly for her, she collapsed to the ground after changing directions without sustaining physical contact from an opponent.
She took no further part in the game, and if it’s an ACL, her 2024 campaign could be in jeopardy. At quarter-time she was visibly upset and was being consoled by teammates on the bench.
Scoreboard
BLUES 1.1, 2.3, 2.8, 3.8 (26)
SAINTS 1.0, 3.1, 6.2, 7.4 (46)
LERNER’S BESTBlues: McKay, Hill, Skepper, Pound, Moody, Goss. Saints: Patrikios, Lambert, Plane, Xenos, Exon, Smith, Boyd.
GOALS Blues: Austin, Goss, Moody. Saints: Xenos 2, Exon 2, Boyd, Friend, Anderson.
INJURIES Blues: Fitzpatrick (knee). Saints: Wardlaw (TBC).
UMPIRES Laycock, Simmonds, Whetton
VENUE Ikon Park
CATS SHAKE OFF HAWKS AS FINALS BERTH LOOMS
Geelong has all but sealed itself an AFLW finals spot after smashing Hawthorn by 40 points at Kardinia Park on Saturday evening.
After a sluggish start, the Cats broke the shackles, kicking the first four goals while restricting the Hawks to their worst ever half-time score of 0.1 (1).
There was no coming back from there for Hawthorn as the Cats rode the midfield domination of Georgie Prespakis and Nina Morrison, as well as three goals from Chloe Scheer, to win convincingly 9.6 (60) to 3.2 (20) after the margin blew out to 46 points in the final term.
HOME FINAL IN GEELONG’S GRASP
The result provisionally moved the Cats up from seventh to sixth on the ladder, and for them to drop out of the top eight from here, Sydney, St Kilda and Collingwood will all have to deliver frightful smashings to Fremantle, Carlton and Richmond respectively and surpass Geelong’s massive percentage buffer in a highly unlikely scenario.
That means the Cats will probably host an elimination final next weekend.
Geelong’s victory has also pushed Essendon closer to the brink. The Bombers have now slipped to seventh, and if two of the Swans, Saints and Magpies win by big enough margins, Essendon will miss out on the finals. To qualify, the Bombers can only afford one of those teams to overtake their percentage.
SUPER CATS DOMINATE
Prespakis and Morrison were ubiquitous as they racked up career-high disposal tallies of 35 and 34 respectively. Prespakis also registered 18 contested possessions and eight clearances, while Morrison helped herself to 14 contested touches, seven clearances and a goal to totally overwhelm Hawthorn’s midfield.
Rebecca Webster had a day out as well with 23 disposals and a goal, while Amy McDonald recorded 23 possessions (15 contested) and eight clearances.
But it wasn’t all good news for Geelong with veteran forward Shelly Scott a late withdrawal before the game due to hamstring tightness, and she is now in a race against time to be fit for the Cats’ first final next week.
HAWKS FINISH WITH A WHIMPER
The result caps off a disappointing year for the Hawks in their second season, as they only managed to equal their tally of three wins from their debut campaign.
Hawthorn will likely finish 2023 in 14th place, and compounding that is the fact that fellow second-year clubs Essendon and Sydney remain in the thick of the finals race in the last round. That would surely provide enough motivation for Bec Goddard’s team to take the next step in 2024.
Scoreboard
CATS 1.2, 3.2, 6.5, 9.6 (60)
HAWKS 0.1, 0.1, 1.2, 3.2 (20)
LERNER’S BEST Cats: Prespakis, Morrison, Webster, Am.McDonald, Scheer, A.Moloney. Hawks: Bates, Lucas-Rodd, Fleming, Stratton, McDonagh.
GOALS Cats: Scheer 3, D.Moloney, Morrison, Webster, A.Moloney, Parry, Surman. Hawks: Stratton 2, Fellows.
INJURIES Cats: Nil. Hawks: Kemp (concussion).
LATE CHANGE Shelly Scott (hamstring) replaced by Gabbi Featherston in Geelong’s selected side
UMPIRES Baigent, O’Brien, Percey
VENUE Kardinia Park
Qualifying finals locked in after Lions strip Dees of minor premiership
- Hannah Davies
The Brisbane Lions have booked themselves a flight to Adelaide for the AFLW qualifying finals after an 25-point win over Melbourne on Saturday night.
The 8.5.53 – 4.4.28 win stripped the Dees of the minor premiership, with the Adelaide Crows now confirmed as ladder-leaders for Season 8 and the rightful host of next weekend’s clash against the Lions. The Dees will drop to second place and face North Melbourne in what is expected to be a tough qualifying clash.
It began as a see-sawing performance in front of 3004 fans, with the Lions leading by just eight points at quarter time with early fumbles and nervous kicks from both sides.
The Dees were able to come back into form in the second quarter, using the wind to their advantage, and some starry marks from Tayla Harris put the Lions on notice as they clawed back to within three points.
But it was the third term where the Lions turned up the heat to bring it home, with midfielders Jade Ellenger and Ally Anderson creating a stunning streamline to their forwards, helping push the Lions to a 27-point lead.
Captain Bre Koenen put on a masterclass in the backline, notching a match-high 22 disposals, while Courtney Hodder was a tackle machine, and Jennifer Dunne created some magic moments of her own.
BOUNCE-BACK
After a few shock losses throughout the season, including St Kilda just last week, the Lions have given their fans some confidence as they head into finals. It hasn’t been their usual steady season, but the side has shown it can fight back in the tough moments.
INJURY WOES
During what was an overall average evening for the Dees, they suffered several injury blows, with Paxy Paxman omitted in the warm up due to a hamstring concern, and Rhiannon Watt out in the second term after failing a concussion test.
Scoreboard
LIONS 2.2 4.3 8.4 8.5 (53)
DEMONS 2.0 4.0 4.1 4.4 (28)
GOALS
Lions: Dakota Davidson 2, Ellie Hampson, Charlie Mullins, Taylor Smith, Sophie Conway 2, Ruby Svarc.
Demons: Casey Sheriff, Tayla Harris, Tyla Hanks, Kate Hore.
BEST
Lions: Taylor Smith, Tahlia Hickey, Dakota Davidson, Jade Ellenger, Courtney Hodder.
Demons: Kate Hore, Tayla Harris, Eden Zanker.
‘Unreal to finish like that’: How Port farewelled a great in style
- Jason Phelan
It was fitting that the glittering career of Erin Phillips ended at Alberton Oval, the Power farewelling the much-respected AFLW legend in fine style with a record-breaking 58-point win at the club’s spiritual home on Saturday.
The player widely regarded as the greatest to play in the AFLW bowed out as Port kicked its highest ever score in the league in a dominant display against the Giants in Pride Round.
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Dogs end on historic low as pressure mounts on Burke
- Ed Bourke
North Melbourne has secured a finals double chance after keeping a hapless Western Bulldogs to just 1.3 (9) in a 46-point win at Whitten Oval on Saturday.
Dynamic midfield duo Ash Riddell and Jasmine Garner ran rampant against a Bulldogs side running on fumes, racking up 67 disposals and 15 clearances between them as the Kangaroos locked themselves into third spot on the ladder.
It was the equal lowest score in the Western Bulldogs’ AFLW history as they slumped to the wooden spoon, with coach Nathan Burke’s position under threat following a one-win season plagued by injuries and broader concerns of the team’s fitness levels and professionalism.
The Roos will either travel to Adelaide to face the Crows or play Melbourne at Ikon Park in a qualifying final depending on the result of Saturday night’s grand final rematch between the Lions and Demons.
BURKE ‘ABSOLUTELY’ WANTS TO CONTINUE
Burke was adamant he had the desire and the backing of his players to continue on as coach next season after a dire campaign, which he blamed on a freak run of injury including two ACLs, a broken leg and ruptured Achilles to important senior players.
“I’ll put up my hand, it was tough in the middle (of the season), but you just can’t help but be swept up by their enthusiasm ... I owe it to them not to lose my passion, I owe it to them to give my all,” he said.
“Absolutely (I want to continue as coach) ... you can throw out big statements, but the devil is in the detail with our year. I think this team have been extraordinary, the majority of AFLW teams, if they are sitting at (0-8) or (1-9) at the end of the year, they would have imploded at one stage ... we didn’t do that, I’m really proud of how we got through that.
“You can tell when a player is not satisfied, and the way that they’re looking at me is like, ‘Burkey, we’re not satisfied, we’re not happy’, and some of them, if they were allowed, would probably come back and train next week.”
THE ENEMY WITHIN
Explosive Kangaroos midfielder Garner’s stellar season has her widely regarded as currently the best player in the competition, but teammate Riddell’s own scintillating form could be what denies her the league best and fairest later this month.
Garner hit the scoreboard with two majors but as she spent bursts forward Riddell continued to dominate at the coalface for the Roos, and the two snatching votes off each other could hurt Garner’s medal chances.
Players were miffed last season when Garner missed the top 10 in medal voting, but surely the criticism would have prompted more umpire awareness of the North star in 2023.
END OF ROCKY’S ROAD
It was a limp to the line for Richelle Cranston in her 60th and final AFLW game, but it brought a close to one of the game’s most unique careers after she was an inaugural player at both Melbourne and Geelong, where she twice was the Cats’ leading goalkicker.
Cranston, who has endured a brutal struggle with stage five chronic kidney disease this season, revealed after the game she would begin dialysis treatment in January.
Coach Nathan Burke became emotional as he described the 34-year-old’s dedication to the Bulldogs, with the forward taking frequent blood tests during the week to be available to play.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a player, men or women, go through the adversity that she went through and the uncertainty she went through this year to get out and play,” Burke said.
“Her legacy as a player who got every single, tiny ounce out of herself is better than anyone that I’ve ever seen.”
Scoreboard
BULLDOGS 0.0, 0.0, 0.1, 1.3 (9)
KANGAROOS 3.3, 4.9, 5.11, 7.13 (55)
BOURKE’S BEST Bulldogs: Blackburn, Newton, Georgostathas, Fitzgerald, Edmonds, Pritchard. Kangaroos: Garner, Riddell, Kearney, Shierlaw, Bruton, King.
GOALS Bulldogs: Gutknecht. Kangaroos: Garner 2, King, Shierlaw, Gavalas, Randall, O’Shea.
INJURIES Bulldogs: nil. Kangaroos: nil.
UMPIRES Clamp, Ferguson, Ritchie
CROWD 2,608 at VU Whitten Oval
Crows tune-up – and rest – for tilt at fourth flag
- Jason Phelan
Under-strength Adelaide tuned up for a tilt at the club’s fourth AFLW premiership with a 26-point win against West Coast in sweltering conditions in Perth on Saturday.
With a top-two finish secured with the Round 9 win against North Melbourne, the Crows rested five players and got the job done to finish the home-and-away season with a 9-1 record.
The Eagles were brave, but slumped to 17th on the ladder with the result, finishing with a 2-8 record.
With temperatures soaring in Perth, the AFLW’s heat policy was in effect, but that didn’t bother Adelaide star Ebony Marinoff, who led the charge with a team-high 24 possessions and a goal.
FRESHENED UP
Skipper Chelsea Randall, three-time club champion winner Anne Hatchard, Stevie-Lee Thompson, Kiera Mueller and Jess Waterhouse were rested ahead of the finals campaign, with Zoe Prowse (ill) the only forced change.
That approach was in danger of backfiring early, when a fired-up Kellie Gibson put the underdog Eagles in front with a superb goal in the second quarter.
But in a stunning eight-minute blitz that augurs well for their finals campaign, the Crows flicked a switch and dominated their opponents.
Adelaide sliced through the Eagles with lightning-quick ball movement to pile on five unanswered goals and set up the win.
One of those majors was a miraculous effort from Madison Newman that landed near the point post and took a sharp left turn through the middle.
FIREPOWER
There were some queries over Adelaide’s scoring options after club leading goalkicker Ash Saint’s off-season switch to Port Adelaide, but Caitlin Gould has been the answer.
The ruck-turned-forward continued her outstanding season with two goals taking her tally to 18, Adelaide with nine goalkickers against the Eagles.
Gould kicked at least one goal in every game this season to finish among the league’s highest goalkickers.
Combined with dangerous duo Danielle Ponter (15 goals) and Eloise Jones (13), the Crows will take one of the most potent attacks into the finals.
Gould’s switch has given greater responsibility to Montana McKinnon in the ruck and she responded with a career-high 35 hitouts against West Coast.
Scoreboard
EAGLES 2.2 4.3 5.5 6.9 (45)
CROWS 2.2 8.2 9.4 11.5 (71)
PHELAN’S BEST EAGLES: Roberts, Swanson, Hooker, Davison, Bushby, Lewis. CROWS: Marinoff, Newman, McKinnon, Martin, Bonner, Charlton, Ponter.
GOALS EAGLES: Gibson 2, McCarthy, Lewis, Davison, Bushby. CROWS: Gould 2, Newman 2, Varnhagen, Ponter, Martin, Marinoff, Kustermann, Charlton, Bonner.
INJURIES EAGLES: Nil. CROWS: Nil.
MINERAL RESOURCES PARK
PLAYER OF THE YEAR
JASON PHELAN’S VOTES
3 Marinoff (Adel)
2 Roberts (WC)
1 Newman (Adel)
Dons face nervous wait as Suns sew up finals spot
– Ronny Lerner
Gold Coast have sewn up an AFLW finals berth, and given their top-four hopes a big boost, after they defeated Essendon by 14 points in Mackay on Friday night.
After an arm wrestle of a first quarter, the Suns asserted their authority on the contest, kicking five of the last seven goals to beat the horribly inaccurate Bombers 6.3 (39) to 3.7 (25).
Essendon were held goalless in the second half, and scoreless in the final quarter.
The result has provisionally catapulted Gold Coast from sixth to third spot on the ladder, and they will clinch a double chance if either premiership favourites Melbourne defeat Brisbane on Saturday night, or the lowly Western Bulldogs upset North Melbourne on Saturday.
But if both the Lions and Kangaroos are victorious, Gold Coast will finish the season fifth and host an elimination final next weekend.
NERVOUS WAIT FOR DONS
The Suns and Bombers headed into their clash in sixth and fifth spot respectively, with a possible top-four spot on offer for the winner.
It was a crucial win for Gold Coast because they might have missed the finals had they lost.
Meanwhile, Essendon are now slightly vulnerable in sixth position as their defeat has made them an outside chance of dropping out of the top eight with Geelong (seventh), Sydney (eighth), St Kilda (ninth) and Collingwood (10th) all just one game behind them.
If at least three of those teams win in the final round, the Bombers might miss the finals, making the next 48 hours rather tense for the second-year club.
Could Essendon end up ruing their shocking loss to struggling West Coast at Windy Hill a fortnight ago? All will be revealed on Sunday night.
NO CHARLIE, NO WORRIES
Gold Coast took on Essendon without star midfielder Charlie Rowbottom (ankle), who had averaged 27 disposals, 10 tackles and seven clearances this season, but her absence didn’t faze the Suns one iota.
Gold Coast trio Claudia Whitfort, Lucy Single and Alison Drennan filled the void left by Rowbottom magnificently to guide the Suns to their first finals series since 2020.
Whitfort finished with 25 disposals (16 contested), 13 tackles and five clearances, Single registered 25 possessions (15), six clearances, six inside 50s and five tackles, while Drennan recorded 22 touches (13) and eight tackles to overpower Essendon’s on-ball brigade.
For the Bombers, Maddie Prespakis had 20 disposals, but had a very quiet second half, while the relentless Georgia Nanscawen never threw in the towel, ending up with 22 possessions (13 contested) and 11 tackles.
Scoreboard
SUNS 1.0, 5.1, 6.1, 6.3 (39)
DONS 1.1, 3.3, 3.7, 3.7 (25)
LERNER’S BEST Suns: Whitfort, Single, Drennan, D’Arcy, McLaughlin, D.Davies. Bombers: Nanscawen, Prespakis, Wales, Alexander, Toogood, Radford.
GOALS Suns: D.Davies 2, D’Arcy, Dupuy, Stanton, Clayden. Bombers: A.Clarke, Radford, Gee.
UMPIRES Chrystie, Jankovskis, Porter
VENUE Mackay
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