Daisy does it all
When West Coast landed Daisy Pearce as head coach of their AFLW team last year, the club described it as “one of the biggest recruiting coups in history”.
The decorated former AFLW premiership captain has long been heralded as a pioneer of the competition, and there were measures of expectation and hype attached to her coaching debut on Friday night against Richmond.
Daisy Pearce in her first game in charge at West Coast.Credit: via Getty Images
Pearce did not buckle under the pressure or disappoint. Rather, her team delivered, pulling off a thrilling one-point victory.
This was a notable performance from a team that finished 17th on the ladder last season and wasn’t expected by many pundits to climb much higher than that this year.
West Coast had previously notched just seven wins across their five seasons in the AFLW, while the Tigers finished 10th last year.
But now the Eagles have a new start and a new era under Pearce, with many fresh faces too. In fact, they had five debutantes against the Tigers as well as another two players playing their first game for the club.
Pearce understands her side is young, so her focus on development, and she hopes the wins will, eventually, take care of themselves.
“That was probably my priority coming here; to build relationships and make sure that every single player feels like I value them and see them for their strengths and want to help them develop as footballers and people,” Pearce said after the win.
She couldn’t have gotten off to a better start.
Kangaroos get revenge, of sorts
Flag favourites North Melbourne got their campaign for a maiden premiership off to a cracking start with an emphatic undoing of Brisbane in the grand final rematch.
The reigning premiers hosted the Kangaroos at Brighton Homes Arena and unfurled their premiership flag before the match. It’s not clear whether North used that as extra motivation after losing last year’s season decider to the Lions by 17 points, but there was no doubt the visitors were relentless in the 30-plus degree heat.
They put the Lions to the sword to finish up with a 44-point victory, kicking six unanswered goals in the third quarter.
It was the first time in AFLW history the Kangaroos had beaten the Lions.
North Melbourne’s star recruit Libby Birch hugs teammate Tahlia Randall following their win in the grand final rematch.Credit: via Getty Images
Many fans online have already started making a case for Roo Jasmine Garner (28 disposals, one goal, six clearances) as the favourite for this year’s league best and fairest award.
Adding injury to insult, Brisbane had Shanae Davison – recruited this season from West Coast – leave the field in the opening minutes of the game with a suspected broken wrist. After taking an intercept mark, she fell backwards and injured her right arm as she stuck it out to break her fall.
It wouldn’t be footy without some umpiring controversy
With just 43 seconds left on the clock in the close encounter at GMHBA Stadium between Melbourne and Geelong, Cats forward Jackie Parry was awarded a free kick just 20 metres out from goal, which resulted in a major.
It came about when veteran Paxy Paxman handed the ball to her teammate Lauren Pearce at a stoppage, instead of giving it to the umpire who had his hands out in expectation.
The Cats’ goal cut the Demons’ margin to just two points, putting the game within the home team’s grasp.
In commentary, Melbourne great Nathan Jones noted it was “a harsh penalty to pay, but that’s the rule”, while caller Alister Nicholson added that it was a “rarely seen free kick”.
But it would have been all too familiar for Collingwood fans, who would remember coughing up a similar free kick in the men’s competition against Fremantle. While that game ended in a draw, the Demons were more fortunate on Saturday night.
Pearce won the ensuing centre bounce and launched the ball into Melbourne’s forward 50-metre arc, making a last-ditch goal too hard for Geelong.
It was some payback for the Demons, who were sent out of last season’s finals in straight sets after bowing to the Cats in a semi-final.
Gone in 15 seconds: Nightmare start for Dogs
The Western Bulldogs suffered the worst possible start when Greater Western Sydney’s Eilish O’Dowd, with her first touch in the AFLW, bolted from the centre circle and kicked the quickest goal in competition history. It took her just 15 seconds.
The Irish recruit won the tap against Dogs ruck Alice Edmonds, who couldn’t catch O’Dowd as she ran away.
It was a precursor of what was to come. The Dogs, who finished 18th last season with just one win to their name, went down to the Giants (16th last season) by 63 points. The Bulldogs notched just one goal and three behinds; the equal lowest-ever AFLW score.
It was, no doubt, a tough initiation for Deanna Berry in her first game as skipper after taking the reins from Ellie Blackburn ahead of the season. As it was for Tam Hyett in her coaching debut – she took over from Nathan Burke in the off-season, and will attempt to steer the Dogs through a comprehensive rebuild.
The Dogs will be the first to admit this season for them is about development and improvement, rather than wins, but they need to be more competitive than they showed in their first outing.
Against the Giants, the Dogs played four debutantes – No.1 pick Kristie-Lee Weston-Turner; Brooke Barwick; Elaine Grigg; and Cleo Buttifant – along with four club debutantes: Lauren Ahrens (from Gold Coast); Analea McKee (Brisbane); Ellie Gavalas (North Melbourne); and, Jasmyn Smith (Gold Coast).
First-gamer Eilish O’Dowd kicks a goal for GWS in the AFLW clash against the Western Bulldogs.Credit: via Getty Images
Next weekend, they face an even tougher task when they confront Port Adelaide with the attention of the footy world on them as they provide the first act in a double-header at the MCG ahead of the Bulldogs men’s elimination final against Hawthorn.
Meanwhile, GWS find themselves sitting top of the ladder, with the eye-watering percentage of 800.
The elements of surprise
When the Western Bulldogs and GWS were up against each other in the final round of the men’s home-and-away season at Mars Stadium in Ballarat, the commentators couldn’t stop talking about the impact the wind was having on the game.
Speaking on Fox Footy, Dwayne Russell made a point to stress the wind, and at times rain, meant the players couldn’t use their best skills.
While the women are accustomed to playing in the elements, often fixtured at suburban and boutique grounds, the wind was particularly severe and played a huge part in round one.
Coach Lisa Webb said Fremantle got the jump on Essendon in the second half of their clash at Windy Hill largely because of the way they used the wind to their advantage.
Essendon did appear rattled after a heavy collision sent Bonnie Toogood and Amber Clarke from the field. But Webb was clear on the reason behind the Dockers’ six-goals-to-one second half.
Then, at Kinetic Oval in Frankston on Sunday, the ball was frequently taken by the wind in Hawthorn’s win over Fremantle.
The vision of Carlton’s Ciara Fitzgerald accepting her own handball demonstrated just how much of an influence the wind was having. As inaugural AFLW player Kate McCarthy wrote on X, “If it’s not a wind-affected game, it’s simply not AFLW”. How players handle the variable conditions regularly plays a big part in AFLW results.
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