North Melbourne’s Emma King, who starred against the Cats, presents a big challenge for St Kilda. Photo: GETTY IMAGES
This weekend marks the AFLW’s annual Pride Round, in which the league celebrates, affirms, and supports Australia’s LGBTQIA+ community, including many of its players.
Several clubs, including Carlton, Western Bulldogs, Geelong and Adelaide, will mark the occasion sporting special jumpers, incorporating elements of the unifying, rainbow flag. Unfortunately, though, the COVID-19 pandemic cares for neither tradition, nor commendable celebrations.
Like that proverbial storm cloud looming over the horizon, it was only a matter of time until the virus cruelly twisted fate. A five-day Western Australia lockdown – announced while last weekend’s last match was being played – has scuttled Fremantle and West Coast’s plans to play interstate matches in South Australia, and restricted them to five days of one hour of outdoor exercise with one teammate, before playing a Derby two days after that.
The New South Wales government has allowed the Crows to travel there from Adelaide, complete part of their 14-day quarantine there, and play the Giants. Got all that?
The logistical snafu rules out what would have been this round’s best clash, Adelaide taking on Fremantle, and elevates the scheduled North Melbourne-St Kilda clash to “must-watch” status. Despite the COVID-19 spectre, all seven matches are now locked in, as 12 of the 14 cubs are playing — literally and figuratively — for pride.
WESTERN BULLDOGS V CARLTON (Friday, 7.45 pm, Victoria University Whitten Oval)
The Blues are still smarting from their first-round, one-goal loss to Collingwood last week, so expect them to play with a chip on their collective shoulder. Carlton’s reigning AFLW best and fairest midfielder Maddie Prespakis escaped suspension after her stoush with Pie Breanna Davey and will be looking to make a major impact. Last week, Carlton’s Tayla Harris was held goalless and limited to just three marks, which begs an interesting question: might Bulldogs coach Nathan Burke shift Isabel Huntington to her natural habitat in the backline to match up on Harris, despite her kicking two goals last week up forward? Carlton must find a way to limit the Dogs’ Elle Blackburn’s considerable influence, if it is a chance. While a premiership contender, Carlton knows it would stumble into a deep hole with a 0-2 start, so look for a refocused Blues side to spoil the Dogs’ party.
GIL TIPS: Carlton
COLLINGWOOD V GEELONG (Saturday 3.10 pm, Victoria Park)
The Pies showed in the opening round that they can score quickly and in great bursts, while the Cats, from the opening siren, were absolutely steamrolled by North Melbourne. The experienced Pies have an embarrassment of riches through the middle, with Davey, Steph Chiocci, Britt Bonnici, and Jaimee Lambert, while Chloe Molloy is dangerous up forward. The Cats wore their despair on their faces last week and their body language signalled dismay. Collingwood deserves to be heavily tipped here, but the Cats would do well to not hang their heads if they get jumped, and instead bare their claws as they did honourably in the last quarter against the Roos.
GIL TIPS: Collingwood
MELBOURNE V RICHMOND (Saturday, 5.10 pm, Casey Fields)
Last week, Gold Coast jumped in front of the Dees and looked like it had a fighting chance to get an upset win. That was before the Suns got “Paxinated.” The Dees’ Karen Paxman inoculated her entire side against opposition attacks with a 13-possession second quarter, helping her side unleash a five-goal term that turned the match around. Her teammate, goalsneak Kristel Petrevski (cousin of Carlton AFL player Sam Petrevski-Seton), was dangerous in front of goal, booting two majors from six touches, while first-year player Eliza McNamara looked the goods in the backline. If the breeze doesn’t work against the Tigers’ goalkicking as it did last week at their Punt Road Oval home, it would do wonders for their confidence. But it’s hard to see the Tiges breaking the duck and getting their first win in league competition against a strong Melbourne side.
GIL TIPS: Melbourne
NORTH MELBOURNE V ST KILDA (Sunday, 1.10 pm, Arden Street)
Don’t let the current ladder fool you: despite this being a 1 v 7 contest, this one has match-of-the-round potential. The Kangaroos have a stockpile of weapons and if the Saints hope to counter, they’ll have to win the ball out of the centre square. Roos’ ruck Emma King euthanised the Cats in the first quarter last week with nine hit-outs and hit the scoreboard three times from eight touches, so St Kilda’s Rhiannon Watt will have her hands full. Watt will look to tap the pill to star Georgia Patrikios, who racked up 21 touches and kicked a goal, while co-NAB Rising Star round one nominee, Tarni White (20 possessions) will be trusted to repel attacks. North’s Ellie Gavalas was too much last week for Geelong, with three goals from 19 touches, but the Roos will have to derail the “G-Train”, Saint Caitlin Greiser, their dangerous full forward. North remains a juggernaut and will aim to make a statement in front of its home fans.
GIL TIPS: North Melbourne
BRISBANE V GOLD COAST (Sunday, 2.10 pm, Hickey Park)
“Q” stands for “quarantine” in the COVID-19 age, but this week it’s for the annual, yet unexpectedly early, “Q Clash,” between Queensland rivals. Brisbane gets a reprieve after spending half of last week’s match kicking into a brutal Brunson Avenue breeze that raged like a cyclone. The Lions kicked just 5.11, but it was enough to get the job done against Richmond, last year’s wooden spooner. The youthful Suns, meanwhile, held their own in the first half against the Dees, demonstrating a real ability to bring the pressure and force opposing sides into mistakes. The Lions’ Isabel Dawes was a revelation last week, gathering 21 possessions and sharing a NAB Rising Star nomination with the Saints’ Tarni White. Keep an eye on Lions’ code-hopping speedster, Courtney Hodder, who traded rugby for footy and last week had three shots on goal (one major) from nine touches. The Lions preyed on a weak side, while in defeat, the Suns learned some valuable lessons. Former Crows’ premiership full forward Sarah Perkins looked rejuvenated and dangerous last round in front of goal. Don’t be surprised if Gold Coast channels its energetic performance and sting of last week’s defeat into pulling off an upset victory.
GIL TIPS: Gold Coast
GWS V ADELAIDE (Sunday, 5.10 pm, Blacktown International Sports Park)
Adelaide last week looked every bit the two-time premier it was in 2017 and 2019 in its domination of West Coast. Crows’ senior coach Matthew Clarke’s magnet-moving paid great dividends, with Erin Phillips running through the middle, Stevie-Lee Thompson down back, and Chelsea Randall and Ashleigh Woodland in attack. With a cork calf she suffered last week against West Coast, Crows’ ball magnet Anne Hatchard is highly unlikely to play. Still, Adelaide can cover her absence. A robust Dockers’ backline last week took advantage of GWS’s ineffective entries. Alyce Parker, Rebecca Beeson, and Elle Bennetts drive the Giants’ attack out of the middle, but they’ll have to dramatically improve on a four-goal output from 25 inside 50s if they’re any chance to get a win on their home soil.
GIL TIPS: Adelaide
Fremantle (1-0) v West Coast (0-1) Sunday, 7.15 pm (AEDT), Fremantle Oval
Well-rounded Freo boasts a powerful midfield, led by Kiara Bowers, but arguably packs the competition’s most potent one-two forward line punch. Give Freo’s Gemma Houghton three metres of space, she’ll take 30, bouncing and leaving defenders in her wake with her fleet, goal-kicking feet. When GWS defenders weren’t tiring of chasing Houghton, the Dockers’ Sabreena Duffy punished them by pouncing on crumbs on booting them through the big sticks. The duo combined for six goals and in the backline, Janelle Cuthbertson dominated in the air. West Coast struggled mightily to score last year and that trend repeated in round when, when they kicked just 2.6 against Adelaide. Eagles’ captain Dana Hooker shoulders the possession load and speed merchant Niamh Kelly looks like a find up forward. All signs, though, point to a Docker domination.
GIL TIPS: Fremantle
