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What AFLW Round 2 taught us

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Expert
12th February, 2019
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With the first two rounds of the AFLW season done and dusted, results are already an indication of what can be expected from the rest of the season.

There are plenty of talking points coming out of each round, and it’s worth exploring some of the key learnings we can take from Round 2 in 2019.

The conferences are all wrong
Having highlighted Fremantle and Adelaide as two dark horses of the competition prior to the commencement of the season, it always appeared to be an issue that the conferences were skewed.

Carlton and Collingwood were the universally-accepted strugglers, and both featuring in the same conference has resulted in a potentially anticlimactic finals series.

Melbourne is currently sitting at the bottom of Conference A with one win and 119.4 per cent – the team would be winning Conference B by a country mile given only Brisbane and Geelong have won games, and both have percentages in the 70s.

Perhaps the emergence of Fremantle is a surprise, however, from the outset, there were at least four flag contenders in Conference A, compared to two in Conference B.

With Geelong suffering from a host of injuries to key players, the quality of that group only appears to worsen.

Brisbane and GWS are clearly the most competitive teams on the right side of the draw, however, on exposed form, neither gets close to any Conference A team. It will be interesting to see how the season plays out, as the final standings have the potential to be disastrously ugly should the trend continue.

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The Dockers are legit
Last week we highlighted that Fremantle was changing the game with its basketball-like approach to its footy. This week, we confirm that the dark horse of the competition is a legitimate threat in Conference A, and it comes on the back of an entertaining brand of footy.

The Dockers are working like a well-oiled machine, with consistently impressive performers across the whole ground. Only Dana Hooker’s numbers are standing out in the midfield, as the franchise player of the team, while each other member is playing their role to perfection.

Ebony Antonio

Ebony Antonio of the Dockers celebrates after the teams win during the round three AFLW match between the Fremantle Dockers and the Melbourne Demons at Fremantle Oval on February 18, 2018 in Fremantle, Australia. (Photo by Will Russell/Getty Images)

Sabreena Duffy is an early bolter for the Rising Star award having kicked two goals from 11 disposals on the weekend, while the Ebony Antonio-Gemma Houghton combination is working extremely well. Both are versatile and end up providing their defenders an outlet kick down the ground to a contested situation by working up to the wing.

All this has come with plenty of improvement to come out of the likes of Kara Donnellan, Hayley Miller and Alex Williams this season, while the ruck situation with Parris Laurie still isn’t clear. Liking the team from out west this year.

Morrison’s injury destroys Geelong’s season
Nina Morrison was the number one pick last season and after her debut, she already appeared to be a top ten player in the competition. When news came through that she suffered an ACL injury, AFLW fans were heartbroken.

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We all wish Morrison a speedy recovery and seeing another talented young player suffer such a serious injury is upsetting, and the effect it has on Geelong is already evident.

Already missing Richelle Cranston (back this week) and Melissa Hickey, the Cats have already been hurt by unavailabilities in 2019 and Morrison’s absence will hurt the most.

As a clean ball user who has an excellent inside game as well, as shown by her eight tackles in Round 1, Morrison’s injury leaves a massive hole in depth of Geelong’s midfield. The performance against the Bulldogs was valiant on occasions but ultimately showed that they were out of their depth when push came to shove. Having liked Geelong as a finals contender preseason, the expansion club will likely struggle for the rest of the season.

Low-scoring games are a myth
Those critical of AFLW often cite two things – poor skills and low scores. It’s easy for people to pile on if they don’t actually watch the sport, and the first fortnight of the season has proven that the league has improved in both those areas.

Even in horrendous conditions, North Melbourne put together an impressive, attacking display, with both them and GWS producing 13 scoring shots each on the night.

Fremantle is averaging 63 points a game, while Carlton and Adelaide produced an entertaining contest when moving the ball forward.

Everything is trending upwards in AFLW and we have only just commenced the third season. In limited game-time, the numbers are impressive overall for many teams and those who are struggling with attacking efficiency will find themselves struggling to win many games.

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It’s exciting to continue to watch a league develop quickly in its infancy and we will continue to see outstanding results and entertaining matches over the next six weeks.

Collingwood won’t win a game
Following on from the previous point, the attacking inefficiencies and poor tactical approach from Collingwood gives an indication that the Magpies won’t win a game. Chloe Molloy’s absence is enormous, particularly given she was likely to play forward this season.

Ash Brazill’s emergence has been impressive out of defence, and her numbers will continue to be outstanding as the Magpies, quite simply, aren’t good enough to prevent the ball from going in their defensive 50.

Sophie Alexander’s absence this week meant Collingwood didn’t have much to target in attack, highlighting her importance after just one game. Sarah D’Arcy isn’t playing close enough to goal and there is a general lethargy about the style of play.

Round 3 sees the Magpies take on Fremantle away from home, and if the first fortnight is anything to go by, it could be a shellacking. Showing competitive signs is all fans will be hoping for.

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