By Marnie Vinall and Claire Siracusa
How this Collingwood star learnt to roll with the punches
Marnie Vinall
Written in large letters on taping around Sabrina Frederick’s wrist during matches this season are the words “Ruck’n’roll”.
Collingwood star Sabrina Frederick.Credit: Wayne Taylor
“It’s a mentality thing,” Frederick told this masthead. “Being in that ruck position, it’s going to be hard physically and mentally, but you’ve just to thrive in that environment and roll with the punches.”
Sometimes, you’ll be up against an All-Australian ruck, and the next week facing a team that plays three rucks on the ground.
The 27-year-old two-time All-Australian loves the “crash and bash” of contest work. It’s what she loves most about the progression of ruck craft in the AFLW.
When the competition started, the mentality towards the ruck position was similar to that of a goalkeeper in soccer:“Just put the tallest, biggest person in the goal,” she said.
“I feel like that was similar, of like, ‘Oh, you’re tall, just throw you in the ruck’.
“[But] there’s so many opportunities in-game to utilise that role if done correctly. And I feel like, when I was younger, it probably wasn’t the case. It was kind of like, just jump and hit the ball and the midfielders will do the rest, sort of thing, whereas now as a ruck, you’re almost expected to be another midfielder.”
A lot this comes down to workrate, said Frederick, where rucks can also be a plus-one ahead or behind the ball, depending on what the team needs. Frederick said she prefers taking a contested mark over kicking a goal, being able to “fly in the air”.
Despite having a standout season so far – which started with her recording 25 hitouts to last season’s All-Australian ruck Ally Morphett’s 13 in round one, plus five tackles – her side has struggled. The Magpies have started 0-3, including a 52-point thumping by the Lions last weekend.
Sabrina Frederick in action against the Lions in round three.Credit: Getty Images
When asked what’s helped Frederick go to another level this year, Collingwood coach Sam Wright credited, in-part, her good work-life balance. Frederick and wife Lili’s daughter Florence is now two, and has helped her stay present and leave the losses at the club.
“Because the reality is, my daughter doesn’t care if I’m the best player in the world. She just wants me to be Mama when I get home. So I think like that has been really helpful,” Frederick said.
“Like, even the last few weeks, you know, we haven’t had the best results ... But when I come home, that doesn’t really matter, so it forces me into thinking about what I actually can control, and the results are the results, and all I can do is get better.”
Collingwood’s next game is on Tuesday night at Ikon Park against West Coast, just four days after their Friday night clash with the Lions.
This season, the 11 home-and-away games are played across 10 weeks, meaning the majority of clubs have four matches between weeks four and seven, resulting in four-day breaks between games.
Ahead of the season, Carlton coach Mathew Buck said the condensed fixture was “a bit much”, as the compressed weeks put pressure on players.
“We’ve added a game, but the truth is, in that period, not everyone’s going to be able to play all those games. The physical load that our players will have to go through to get up for each of those games just is unreal,” Buck told AFL Women’s.
Frederick returned home at around 1am after the Magpies’ Friday night game in Brisbane and had light training with her team on Sunday in the lead-up to their Tuesday game. Their next game after that is this Sunday afternoon.
“The good thing is everyone’s in the same boat, everyone has got this over the next couple of weeks. So it’s not like we’re the only team sort of going through it. You understand that everyone’s going to have challenges,” said Frederick.
“I think it’s sort of crucial just to manage people’s recovery more than anything, like you can’t really be getting in major sessions in before games ... And at the end the day, no one’s done it before, so who knows, it might turn out to be OK.”
When the fixture was announced, Essendon co-captain Bonnie Toogood said the short turnaround times could be difficult for players, but they could result in younger players getting a run around.
However, the injury-hit Collingwood have already struggled with player selection issues this season. In round two, the Magpies were forced to name two VFLW players as emergencies to reach the minimum 24 required for game day.
“We would love to put out, you know, a certain team, or whatever that may be, but you’ve just got to take the positive with the situation,” said Frederick.
“The more people that know our system, the better. [That] hopefully creates more depth for the future.”
She’s also not deterred by the poor start: “I feel like the competition now is, anyone can win on any given day ... it’s exciting to be a fan, but exciting to play because everyone has a chance… you don’t know how it’s going to go. So, yeah, OK, we’ve lost the first three games, but we have another eight games. Let’s see what we can do.”
Collingwood face West Coast on Tuesday at 7.15pm at Ikon Park.
Bulldogs blow: Ellie Blackburn out for the season
Claire Siracusa
The Western Bulldogs’ winless season has gone from bad to worse as the club announced star vice captain Ellie Blackburn would miss the rest of their campaign with a serious foot injury.
The 29-year-old suffered “a disruption to the mid-foot ligament in her left foot” during the final minute of the loss to West Coast on Thursday night, and needs surgery, meaning she won’t play again this year.
“We’re all devastated for Ellie, who has been one of our most durable and reliable players and was set for another impactful campaign,” the Bulldogs’ general manager of women’s football, Patrice Berthold, said.
“After conducting a thorough review of available options, our medical staff have deemed surgery as the best course of action to facilitate her return to play in 2025.
Ellie Blackburn has been ruled out for the rest of the season.Credit: AFL Photos
“We’ll wrap our arms around Ellie and provide her with as much support as she needs throughout this entire process to ensure she can be at her best with us next year.”
The Bulldogs have already reached record lows in their three losses this season, failing to register a goal against Port Adelaide at the MCG in the second week – eclipsing their own previous worst competition score of one goal three behinds, set in week one against the Giants in a 63-point thrashing.
The Dogs have a hard run now, meaning a finals berth is all but out of the question given each team plays 11 games in the home-and-away season.
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