Collingwood netball superstar Sharni Layton comes out in defence of AFLW

TWO rounds into AFLW02 and criticism about the standard, scorelines and entertainment value has continued, but Collingwood netball superstar Sharni Layton has called for the naysayers to pull their heads in.

NETBALL MAGPIES v SWIFTS at Hisense Arena Melbourne. Magpies Sharni Layton tries to block Swifts Helen Housby's shot. Picture: Andrew Henshaw

COLLINGWOOD Netball superstar Sharni Layton has come out in defence of her AFLW colleagues telling anyone criticising the game to “cool their jets”.

Two rounds into the second season of the women’s game, criticism about the standard, scorelines and entertainment value has continued, despite the sport’s popularity and participation growing around the country.

In a column written for Collingwood’s website, Layton has laid bare the 13 years of hard work and struggles she and her netball peers have gone through to get the game to where it now is, and predicts it will take AFLW just five years to achieve the same.

Taking readers on her journey — which started in 2004 — Layton talks of the days of being paid $1,000 a season and travelling with a microwave in a bid to cut costs right through to that state of play today.

Just because I love an opinion. Have a read x https://t.co/RVwOkHX6iL

— Sharni Layton (@Sharni_Layton) February 16, 2018

Sharni Layton will be back with Collingwood for the 2018 season

Calling on the pessimists to recognise the sport and the athletes in their own right, Layton says it’s time to bring an end to the constant comparisons between the male and female codes.

“As a society, women’s sport and female athletes are still viewed in a different category to that of our male counterparts,” she wrote.

READ Sharni Layton’s column in full here

“Fortunately for us netballers, our game isn’t constantly compared to any other male sport, even though we have great men that have played our game.

“For athletes in the AFLW, they are constantly compared to the AFL; a sport that has catered to professional, full-time athletes since the late 90s.

“What if there was no AFL to compare it to and it was just AFLW in a league of its own? Would you see it differently? Would you have different expectations?

“These girls are working 9-5 with nine-hours contracted during their training week. And, they are doing an amazing job with that balancing act.

“The AFLW had a great leg up thanks to the platform provided by the AFL. It went straight to prime-time TV with more media coverage than any other women’s sport, but these athletes aren’t considered professional in the hours they train.

AFLW has come in for criticism this year — Layton says unfairly so

“So for anyone throwing around criticism or judgment, cool your jets.

“If the score line isn’t as great as the AFL — who cares? Do people stop watching soccer because games are 1-0? No, it’s about the contest.

“The product of AFLW is far greater than what the final score of a game is.”

Layton, who last year took a four-month break from netball because of exhaustion, is now back training with her Collingwood teammates at the Holden Centre ahead of the second Super Netball season getting underway in late April.

The first round has been pushed back because of the Commonwealth Games which take place between April 4-16.

Layton was not included in Lisa Alexander’s 12-person Diamonds squad for the Gold Coast event — a decision she said had left her “torn in two.”

“It was an enormously difficult selection, there’s no other way to say it,” said coach Lisa Alexander at the time.

“What we have done is try to pick a team on form, on who is performing now. It’s been tough, as we have had so many great performers for us.

“What made the decision that much more complex is that we’ve also had to consider the ‘what ifs’ that you must be prepared for in a tournament.”

READ Sharni Layton’s column in full here

Originally published as Collingwood netball superstar Sharni Layton comes out in defence of AFLW