Adelaide’s Danielle Ponter gets around Gold Coast’s Meara Girvan during the Crows’ big win on Sunday. Photo: GETTY IMAGES
GEELONG 4.1 (25) def by MELBOURNE 11.8 (74)
The steamrolling, top-of-the-ladder Demons keep flattening opponents, with the Cats this time falling victim. Melbourne’s Kate Hore was merciless for the reigning premiers, kicking four goals to snatch the comp’s lead, with 14. Hore was one of four Demons with at least 20 touches — Paxy Paxman, who also kicked two goals, Tyla Hanks, and Lily Mithen were the others. The Cats dominated one category they’d rather not have — turnovers — and the Dees punished them for it on the scoreboard. Nina Morrison continued her red hot form for Geelong, racking up 30 possessions, recording eight clearances and kicking a goal.
RICHMOND 4.6 (30) def by FREMANTLE 5.7 (37)
As if playing without star midfielder Kiara Bowers wasn’t bad enough, another Dockers’ bright light, Ebony Antonio was a late withdrawal, yet Fremantle played its best game this season, scoring early and often, then holding off a late Tigers’ charge. Fremantle’s Aine Tighe continues putting her hand up for All-Australian consideration, leading her club with 19 touches, kicking a goal, and helping down back with a couple of important intercept marks. Dockers’ pocket rocket Mikaela Tuhakaraina showcased her speed and nose for the goals by booting two majors and laying an important tackle in the dying minutes. The Tigers’ Mon Conti was superb with a match-best 30 touches and nine clearances, leading her club’s fightback.
CARLTON 6.8 (44) def SYDNEY 6.3 (39)
The Blues won a nailbiter in the first-ever AFLW meeting between the two sides, falling behind early to the Swans, then surpassing them, and ultimately staving off a brave fightback. After the Blues’ Mimi Hill’s final term goal seemed at the time a likely sealer, Rebecca Privitelli nearly dragged her Sydney teammates over the line. She kicked the last of her four goals with just under five minutes to play, after taking a mark of the year contender in the middle of a pack. Her major brought Sydney to within four points, but the Swans couldn’t close that gap. Abbie McKay, with 25 touches, nine clearances, and eight tackles, was Carlton’s best in its victory.
WESTERN BULLDOGS 6.0 (36) def by ST KILDA 8.6 (54)
The Saints marched to their second straight win after starting the season with three losses, while the Doggies stayed winless, continue their downward spiral. St Kilda off-season high profile recruit Jesse Wardlaw enjoyed her best performance with her new club, kicking three goals, taking a team-high six marks, and contributing in the ruck with 10 hitouts. Hannah Priest (28 touches and 10 tackles), Jaimee Lambert (22 touches and four clearances), and Georgia Patrikios (24 touches and three clearances) strongly led the Saints’ on-ball brigade. The Doggies railed from a first-term deficit to overtake the Saints in the second, but the Saints leapfrogged the Doggies before halftime, then kept them scoreless in the final term. Ellie Blackburn (31 possessions and 12 clearances), and Alice Edmonds (35 hitouts and two goals) were the Doggies’ best.
WEST COAST 6.3 (39) def PORT ADELAIDE 4.9 (33)
The Eagles snapped their long winless streak, winning for the first time in 11 matches, and in doing so, rose from the ladder’s bottom rung. But their defeating the Power by a straight kick, in a contest which went down to the wire, wasn’t easy. Kate Bartlett and Aisling McCarthy formed a goalkicking tag-team for West Coast, with each of them kicking two goals apiece. In a losing effort, Port Adelaide’s Gemma Houghton, the former Dockers’ star, had an individually successful return to the west, kicking two majors, while Abbey Dowrick gathered 22 possessions and had nine clearances.
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COLLINGWOOD 6.8 (44) def. ESSENDON 3.6 (24)
In what might qualify as a mild upset, the Magpies rebounded from two consecutive losses to knock the Bombers down from their top-eight perch. The Pies’ Alana Porter’s lightning quick pace was instrumental in her soccering one goal after winning a footrace with a chasing defender and snapping through another after bursting with the ball from a contest, while teammate Sabrina Frederick dominated with ruck with 31 hitouts and laid eight tackles. For Essendon, Bonnie Toogood continued her red-hot goalkicking with three majors, while Madison Prespakis had 30 touches and eight clearances.
NORTH MELBOURNE 4.8 (32) def GWS 0.2 (2)
A five-goal victory shouldn’t normally disappoint the winners, but with the Roos battling for highest ladder position for their inevitable finals berth, they may well regret not smashing the listless Giants by a much bigger margin. While North star Ash Riddell’s stellar 31 possessions and 12 clearances topped those categories, Jenna Bruton had a field day, continuing her strong form after returning from injury, with 26 touches and eight tackles, and Jasmine Garner, with 24 possessions and a goal, did nothing to diminish her chances of capturing the AFLCA AFLW Player of the Year award, whose voting she currently leads. The Giants, meanwhile, remain winless and are firmly anchored on the bottom of the ladder.
HAWTHORN 5.2 (32) def by BRISBANE 8.11 (59)
A true tale of two halves unfolded in Frankston, where after the first, the second-year Hawks must’ve felt, with an eight-point edge, they were a chance to upset the Grand Finalist Lions. But when the second half began, Brisbane flipped the switch and went into beast mode. The Lions kicked six of the match’s last seven goals and ultimately coasted to a comfortable, 27-point win. Brisbane’s Dakota Davidson bounced back from a week off due to suspension by kicking three goals, while Ally Anderson ran riot, accumulating 30 disposals, eight clearances, and eight tackles, and Isabel Dawes complemented her 20 touches with two goals and 11 tackles. The Hawks’ Birdie Hipwell kicked two goals, while Emily Bates had 17 possessions and a match-high 14 tackles.
ADELAIDE 7.5 (47) def GOLD COAST 2.3 (15)
With a belting of the improving Suns, the unbeaten Crows kept pace with the Demons, who they trail in percentage points atop the ladder. Gold Coast sought to curtail Adelaide star mid Ebony Marinoff’s influence by having Lucy Single tag her — only to leave Crow Madison Newman free to gather 25 possessions. Marinoff’s foil Anne Hatchard helped herself to 27 possessions while laying 10 tackles and winning seven clearances. Adelaide’s Danielle Ponter kicked two goals, playing in her her 50th match, while teammates Caitlin Gould and Eloise Jones also booted two majors each. In defeat, the Suns’ Charlie Rowbottom had a monster game, with 29 touches, 13 tackles, and seven clearances and Jac Dupuy kicked two majors.
