Tough Melbourne midfielder Olivia Purcell made a successful return from facial surgery on Sunday, even though it was difficult for her to breathe or communicate with her teammates through a black facial guard.
Purcell kicked a goal as the Demons notched their third-straight win, beating St Kilda by 14 points at Moorabbin.
Demon Olivia Purcell played in a mask because of a facial injury she suffered pre-season.Credit: Getty Images
Veterans Paxy Paxman and Eden Zanker (two goals) also returned from injury in the 6.8 (44) to 5.0 (30) win, while the masked Purcell played her first senior game this season.
Purcell needed surgery for serious injuries she suffered in a collision during a pre-season match.
She was hospitalised and forced to stay in South Australia after a collision during the pre-season match against Port Adelaide, and could not be operated on until the swelling subsided. She was also concussed in the incident.
“She couldn’t raise her heart rate above 100, so it was a good five/six weeks of rest. Then the last couple of weeks things have really picked up. She went through a hard contact session to make sure she was ready to play today, and she hasn’t taken a backward step,” Melbourne coach Mick Stinear said of Purcell’s return.
“Even playing in that mask is not an easy thing to do, tough to breath, tough to communicate. She really showed her passion for the team while she was out, and she made us a better team today.”
The victory continued a dramatic recovery for the Demons, who recovered from a losing streak earlier in the season.
Purcell evades a tackle.Credit: Getty Images
“On the back of three games in 11 days, I was pleased with the way we were able to finish,” Stinear said.
“We were under the pump a few weeks ago and now the team is gathering some momentum.”
Can anyone stop North Melbourne?
The ladder leading North continued on their merry way with a 60-point win over Sydney on Sunday. Their only blemish this season came in round two, when they were held to a draw by Geelong.
The Kangaroos have won every other game, and now boast a percentage of 313. They will start favourites against Essendon, Adelaide and Gold Coast in their final three games, and will take some stopping in the finals.
However, Irish defender Erika O’Shea suffered a painful ankle injury.
North’s Jasmine Garner signs autographs for fans after Sunday’s game.Credit: via Getty Images
Jasmine Garner produced yet another masterclass in Sunday’s match at North Hobart Oval, the six-time All-Australian finishing with 25 disposals, seven clearances, nine tackles, 438m gained and three goals in a best-afield display.
Fellow Roos midfielder Ash Riddell (30 disposals, six clearances) was also influential, while Alice O’Loughlin kicked three goals.
O’Shea was in distress immediately after the tackle and was carried off the ground and put into a moon boot, but the Kangaroos are optimistic the injury is on the minor end.
“The update is it’s not as serious as first thought,” Kangaroos coach Darren Crocker said.
AFLW ROUND SEVEN
- St Kilda 7.7 (49) d Greater Western Sydney 2.3 (15)
- Melbourne 2.4 (16) d Adelaide 1.8 (14)
- Port Adelaide 4.9 (33) d Collingwood 3.7 (25)
- Essendon 3.8 (24) d Western Bulldogs 0.3 (3)
- Hawthorn 11.8 (74) d. West Coast 1.2 (8)
- Richmond 6.10 (46) d. Geelong 5.9 (39)
- Brisbane 6.8 (44) d. Gold Coast 4.4 (28)
- Carlton 5.4 (34) d. Fremantle 4.6 (30)
- North Melbourne 14.3 (87) d. Sydney 4.3 (27)
- St Kilda 5.0 (30) lost to Melbourne 6.8 (44)
- GWS 4.4 (28) lost to Adelaide 14.8 (92)
“She rolled her ankle and nothing too serious. She’ll see how she goes this week, but they don’t expect her to be out for hopefully much time at all.”
Also on Sunday, Adelaide ball magnet Ebony Marinoff fell just short of breaking the AFLW’s disposal record as the Crows made amends for a shock midweek loss to Melbourne with a 64-point demolition of GWS at Sydney’s Henson Park.
Geelong’s finals hopes over as Tigers snatch thriller
Emelia Yassir has kicked three goals to lead Richmond to a thrilling seven-point AFLW win over Geelong in a result that has killed off the Cats’ slim finals hopes.
In a final quarter that featured five lead changes, late goals to Yassir and Katie Brennan lifted Richmond to the 6.10 (46) to 5.9 (39) win at the Swinburne Centre.
Big effort: Katie Brennan’s sealing goal against Geelong.Credit: Fox Footy
The result improved the Tigers to 6-2 and put them right in the mix for a top-four berth.
But Geelong, with two wins, five losses and one draw to their name, are almost certain to miss the finals even if they win their remaining three games.
“I’m a bit in awe of what the girls put up, the fight we showed,” Richmond’s Kate Dempsey told Fox Sports after the win.
Richmond’s Monique Conti lays a tackle on Geelong’s Georgie Prespakis.Credit: AFL Photos via Getty Images
“We’ve owed Geelong a big game for a long time. They’re hard to beat. I can’t believe it.”
Star Richmond midfielder Monique Conti racked up 27 disposals, seven clearances and 1.3, while for Geelong it was forward Aishling Moloney (23 disposals, one goal) who produced a dazzling display.
Blast as fatigued players battle through AFLW fixture
The AFLW’s condensed fixture has come under fire after Friday night’s dour clash between Essendon and the Western Bulldogs, as player exhaustion took a toll.
Essendon regained a top-eight spot after grinding their way to a 23-point win over a Western Bulldogs side which set some unwanted history at Whitten Oval, but the first AFLW match between the clubs was a mistake-ridden affair, with the Bombers notching a fourth straight win, 3.8 (26) to 0.3 (3).
Essendon’s Ashleigh Van Loon is tackled.Credit: Getty Images
It was Essendon’s fourth AFLW match in 15 days, while the Bulldogs were playing their third game in that time. The AFL condensed the fixture this season with clubs having four games within three weeks, scheduled throughout the week.
Former Bulldogs AFLW coach Nathan Burke said the compressed schedule should be abandoned.
“We wondered what 4 games in 14 days would do for the game and the players. Well now we know. So don’t do it again,” he said on X.
The Dogs became the first AFLW side to be held goalless three times in a season and recorded their lowest score for the second straight game, after recording just four points against the Kangaroos last week.
Wind and fatigue did not help, with scores at a premium, with Essendon gifted the first two goals of the game after receiving 50-metre off the ball free kicks.
“We weren’t able to move the ball, particularly inside 50, how we were trying to, but sometimes you just grind those wins out,” Bombers captain and former Bulldog Bonnie Toogood told Fox Footy.
“We won three games in nine days in the condensed fixture, and then to top this off I think it’s four wins in 15 days. We’ll take that any day off the week.”
Free-scoring Hawks dent Eagles’ AFLW finals hopes
Hawthorn’s AFLW “hokball” has shot them to top spot after they belted West Coast by 11 goals. The free-scoring Hawks dominated after quarter-time on Saturday at home in Frankston, mauling the Eagles 11.8 (74) to 1.2 (8).
It was five points short of Hawthorn’s highest score, kicked in round five against Geelong, and the equal-third lowest score for West Coast.
Just as the Hawks lit up the AFL late in the season with “hokball” – a high-octane style of play with rapid ball movement and equally energetic celebrations – their women are doing the same under new coach Daniel Webster.
Captain Emily Bates, who starred with 22 disposals and two goals, was rapt with how they played in their fourth-straight win.
Fend-off: Kaitlyn Ashmore of the Hawks evades West Coast’s Jaide Britton.Credit: AFL Photos
“I’m really proud of the group - just being able to put more speed on the ball, play our way,” she said.
“It was good to play more our brand, a bit of hokball.”
The Hawks continue to show they are premiership contenders after finishing 15th and 16th in their first two AFLW seasons.
A screamer and a Port winning streak
Matilda Scholz’s ruck masterclass, highlighted by one of the AFLW’s great marks, lifted Port Adelaide to an eight-point win over Collingwood and into the top eight.
The Power’s 4.9 (33) to 3.7 (25) victory at Alberton on Thursday night gave them their first three-game win streak since entering the competition in 2022.
Their joy was tempered, though, with Julia Teakle finishing the game on the sidelines after limping off with a right knee injury early in the third quarter.
A screamer in the AFLW.Credit: Fox Footy
Teakle will undergo scans on Friday, the club confident she has avoided serious damage.
The ruck-rover combination of Scholz (15 possessions - all contested, 20 hit-outs, nine clearances) and Abbey Dowrick (20 disposals, nine clearances) was dynamic all evening, while defender Molly Dowrick and winger Shineah Goody also impressed.
Flying high: Matilda Scholz of Port Adelaide.Credit: AFL Photos via Getty Images
The home side recaptured the lead on a Gemma Houghton gem, the Port spearhead ripping a ruck contest out of the air, spinning and snapping from a tight angle.
Acting captain Justine Mules-Robinson stretched Port’s buffer to seven points, before Scholz had the home fans on their feet when she soared for a spectacular mark over a six-player pack.
Scholz, who modestly described her stunning grab as a “bit of a fluke”, converted to give the Power a 14-point three-quarter time break.
AAP
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