We have reached the penultimate round of the 2022 AFL Women’s season and there is so much at stake as the Adelaide Crows and Melbourne try to gain the upper hand in the race for the minor premiership, while the West Coast Eagles attempt to offload the wooden spoon.

With no Friday night footy this weekend, Saturday will see four matches played, including a double header at Optus Stadium, which will have a reduced maximum capacity of 50 per cent, while Sunday is headlined by a heavyweight clash between the Brisbane Lions and North Melbourne.

It also stands to be a huge weekend for the GWS Giants, with their women’s team playing their first regular season home match against Richmond at Giants Stadium, the same venue that will play host to the men’s side’s pre-season match against Collingwood the next day.

At the end of the round, Carlton will look to continue their late-season resurgence and all but deliver the knockout blow to any faint hopes of finals the Gold Coast Suns might have.

Here is your preview to Round 9.

St Kilda versus Geelong Cats
It has been a tough season for Nick dal Santo’s side, who suffered the ultimate heartbreak when they lost to the GWS Giants by two points after conceding a 50-metre penalty and goal after the siren last Wednesday.

However, playing their second game in five days, the previously winless Saints were able to get off to a strong start against the Suns, winning by three points after leading by 24 points at one stage and kicking three goals to nil in the first quarter.

It was clear to see the relief upon the players’ faces after breaking their winless run, which has reignited interest in the battle for the wooden spoon, with the West Coast Eagles now sinking to the foot of the ladder.

The Saints will look to keep their run going against the Geelong Cats, who are coming off just their second win of the season, against fellow strugglers Richmond.

A strong second quarter, in which they kicked four goals to nothing, was the catalyst for their 23-point win over the Tigers, and they had done enough to the point where they didn’t kick a single goal after half-time.

They were best served by Amy McDonald, who racked up 23 touches, while Phoebe McWilliams booted two of their five majors.

Despite their 2-6 win-loss record, they have performed admirably in most matches this year, and while they will fancy their chances against the Saints this weekend, so too will the home side, which will look to make it consecutive wins on Saturday.

Prediction: Geelong Cats by 11 points.

GWS Giants versus Richmond
Whatever hopes the GWS Giants had of fighting their way back into finals contention all but evaporated last weekend, as the euphoria of their post-siren win over the Saints last Wednesday was quickly replaced by yet another disappointing defeat, this time against Carlton.

They appeared doomed against the Saints when they conceded a goal inside the final five minutes, only for one final push forward to result in a free kick and 50-metre penalty in their favour giving Katherine Smith the chance to kick a goal after the siren.

Smith converted truly, becoming the first player in AFLW history to kick a goal after the siren – something which twice eluded the Brisbane Lions’ Greta Bodey.

That was followed by the loss against Carlton in Canberra, which has all but ended their finals hopes, leaving them with two matches to finish the season and to start looking ahead to 2023.

Their clash against Richmond – the first AFLW regular season match to be played at Giants Stadium – will be a battle for pride, with the Tigers also no chance of reaching the finals after returning only two wins from eight matches.

Despite the best efforts of Monique Conti, who finished with 23 disposals, the yellow and black were no match for the Geelong Cats, booting only one goal for the match in the second quarter, before both sides failed to kick a major after half-time.

It has therefore been a disappointing season for the Tigers, who have only won two matches, but can make it three with a win over the Giants in Sydney this Saturday.

Prediction: Richmond by eight points.

Fremantle versus Melbourne
The first match of the Optus Stadium double header sees a potential finals preview when second-placed Melbourne head west across the Nullarbor to face third-placed Fremantle.

Last week saw both clubs face top-four opposition, with Freo just falling short against the Adelaide Crows at home while the Dees made it 12 consecutive wins at their Casey Fields fortress with a strong win against North Melbourne.

Now, a fortnight out from the commencement of the finals series, the Dockers and Dees will test each other’s flag credentials as they continue to fight it out for a first-week finals bye, which will also mean hosting a preliminary final on home soil in the final weekend of March.

Freo will have taken some learnings out of their loss to the Crows, and having also lost to a fellow contender in the Roos earlier this season, will want to prove themselves as genuine flag fancies against the Dees, for whom this is their second road trip in three weeks.

They had led by two points at three-quarter time – but failed to kick a goal in the final term as they dropped just their second match of the season, leaving them in a tight battle to retain second place on the ladder, currently held by Melbourne.

Hours after the Dockers’ loss to the Crows, the Dees ground out a ten-point victory over fellow Victorian flag fancies North Melbourne, with two of their four goals coming via 50-metre penalties.

Tayla Harris continued her good form for her new club with two majors as well as a mark-of-the-year contender, and she may as well be the x-factor as the Dees’ women’s side look to emulate their men’s side’s flag heroics with a premiership of their own.

Saturday night’s clash is also a rematch of last year’s elimination final, which the Dees won to send the Dockers out of the finals before ultimately losing to the Adelaide Crows in the preliminary final.

In Perth, the Dockers should grab the points and move back ahead of Melbourne on the ladder as they seek to finish in the top two on a unified ladder for the first time.

Prediction: Fremantle by six points.

West Coast Eagles versus Western Bulldogs
Later that evening, the West Coast Eagles will attempt to offload the wooden spoon when they face the Western Bulldogs, who have everything to play for as they currently sit just outside the top six with two rounds of the minor premiership to play.

The Eagles last Sunday suffered a humiliating 74-point loss to the Brisbane Lions at home, continuing a difficult season which has only seen them win once – against the then-winless St Kilda – in the final match in their Melbourne hub.

Not only was it the worst losing margin in AFLW history, the 15.8 (98) was also the highest score conceded by any side, but amid the carnage, Emma Swanson fought hard with 22 disposals in a midfield that was swamped by their Lions counterparts.

The result – combined with St Kilda’s three-point win over the Gold Coast Suns earlier in the day – saw the westerners drop to the bottom of the ladder with two rounds remaining.

The Eagles can now prove some nuisance value when the Bulldogs trek west with their tails in between their legs after a disappointing loss to Collingwood last Sunday.

The Dogs’ defence was tested all day as they struggled to contain the Pies’ run and carry, which saw them boot ten majors against six for the Dogs, two of which were kicked by captain Ellie Blackburn, who never stopped trying for her side.

That followed a thrilling draw against the Gold Coast Suns, in which they came from 24 points down at the last change to salvage two points from another lamentable showing.

With Western Australia’s borders now fully open, it’s expected the Dogs will be allowed to hold at least one training session in Perth before they take to Optus Stadium for what will be the West Coast Eagles’ first home game at the venue against a side other than Fremantle.

On the road, the Dogs should keep their finals hopes alive ahead of what’s expected to be a tough final-round home game against the Brisbane Lions.

Prediction: Western Bulldogs by 11 points.

Brisbane Lions versus North Melbourne
After running riot against the West Coast Eagles in Perth last weekend, the Brisbane Lions will face a tougher test of their premiership defence when they welcome North Melbourne to the sunshine state in the battle of fourth versus fifth on Sunday.

The Lions put behind them the frustration of being run down from behind by Melbourne the previous Monday with a ruthless performance against the Eagles, the 15.8 (98) and 74-point margin both setting records for the highest ever score and margin in AFLW history respectively.

It is the strongest indication yet that while the Adelaide Crows might be the team to beat in the chase for this year’s flag, Craig Starcevich’s side will not give up their flag just yet, as they attempt to emulate their men’s side’s feat of winning a hat trick of flags two decades on.

Next in the line of fire are North Melbourne, who were let down by ill-discipline in their ten-point loss to Melbourne, the loss seeing them drop to fifth on the ladder.

They gave away three 50-metre penalties, two of them resulting in goals to the Dees, but despite the ill-discipline, Kaitlyn Ashmore and Ash Riddell did their best to keep their side in the contest in spite of a scoreless third quarter.

The Roos now face a huge battle not just facing the Lions in the sunshine state, but also keeping their top-four hopes alive, because only the top four out of the six finalists will enjoy home-ground advantage in the finals series.

Expect the Lions to not just start hot favourites at home, but also dismiss another challenger on their march to consecutive flags.

Prediction: Brisbane Lions by 18 points.

Adelaide Crows versus Collingwood
The Adelaide Crows’ final home game of the regular season sees them welcome Collingwood, whose finals hopes hang in the balance, in a match that oozes commercial appeal given the pulling power of both clubs in their home states.

Matthew Clarke’s side moved one step closer to clinching the minor premiership, which comes with a home preliminary final at the very least, with an epic win over Fremantle in the west seeing them secure flag favouritism with finals not far away.

After they had trailed by just two points at the final change of ends, Anne Hatchard and Ebony Marinoff lifted when their side needed them to as they booted two goals to nothing in the final quarter to run out nine-point victors.

They will continue their finals warm-up against Collingwood, who sit in sixth place on the ladder with a game-and-a-half buffer on the Western Bulldogs, whom they beat at Victoria Park last Sunday.

Their dominant win, in which they booted their highest ever score of 10.6 (66), was sadly soured by the news that Brittany Bonnici has suffered the dreaded season-ending ACL injury, which has ended her streak of playing every single AFLW game since the league’s inception in 2017.

Jaimee Lambert was a clear best-on-ground, with three goals and 22 disposals, while Sabrina Frederick booted multiple goals for the first time in nearly four years.

They now need to back up for the trip to Adelaide, which will be their second in as many years, but if they can pull off the impossible (or possible, as the Western Bulldogs proved a few weeks ago), they will all but shut up shop on the top six with a round to play after this.

However, at home, the Crows should flex their premiership muscle.

Prediction: Adelaide Crows by 20 points.

Carlton versus Gold Coast Suns
Having come off back-to-back wins for the first time this season, Carlton will look to continue their resurgence when they welcome the Gold Coast Suns to Princes Park in the final match of the round. The Suns are in the midst of a three-game road trip to finish their season.

Darcy Vescio became the first player in AFLW history to kick 50 career goals as her side got the better of the GWS Giants in Canberra, keeping intact the Blues’ undefeated record against them dating back to Round 2, 2017.

They led by only two points at half-time, but ran away in the second half to win by 18 points and keep the faintest of finals hopes alive, though would need to win their final two matches and hope that both Collingwood and the Western Bulldogs suffer two heavy losses in the intervention.

Their opponents, the Suns, are only half a game above them on the ladder and are the likelier of the two to Bradbury their way into September, and this too is also dependent on slip-ups by the Pies and Bulldogs in the final two rounds.

From their past two matches, the women from the holiday strip could only manage two out of a possible eight premiership points, first throwing away a 24-point three-quarter-time lead to be pegged to a draw against the Western Bulldogs, before going down to St Kilda by three points.

Cameron Joyce would be left to lament a poor first half by his side against the Saints as they trailed by 24 points in the first half before beginning their comeback in the second half, before Sarah ‘Tex’ Perkins wasted two chances to win the match for her side at the death.

Firstly, she pushed a set shot wide after receiving a free kick for a ruck infringement, before marking metres from goal minutes later but also missing the target.

This left them three points short of what would’ve been a much-needed win, and they will know by the start of Sunday’s match whether their finals hopes remain alive, or whether they will be playing for pride with one round to play after this weekend.

At home, the Blues should make it three wins in a row, but not without an almighty challenge from the Suns.

Prediction: Carlton by 14 points.