IT WAS a fairly non-descript match on paper, with a little bit of interest from the AFLW diehards.

But as the nation settled in on the couch on the Thursday night before the AFL Grand Final last year – in the mood to watch whatever football was on the box, men's or women's – what unfolded between Geelong and Hawthorn at GMHBA Stadium was fast, fantastic and engrossing footy.

We're often quick to jump to extremes when it comes to football, but the moniker of "greatest AFLW match of all time" wasn't hyperbole.

The Hawks ended up triumphing 12.7 (79) to the Cats' 9.7 (61), which at the time was the second-highest match aggregate score in the AFLW's history (now fourth).

The other three games in that bracket were all blow-outs, making this the highest-scoring, closest match we've ever seen in elite women's football.

Eventual leading goalkicker Aishling Moloney booted three, as did unheralded young Hawk Laura Stone, while the brown-and-gold engine room of Emily Bates (28 disposals) and Mattea Breed (eight clearances) did the heavy lifting.

And on Thursday night the two teams will face off again at the scene of the crime, GMHBA Stadium.

"I think it was just a great show of how far we've come as a competition, how the skill level has risen, and it was sort of branded as one of the best games of the year. It was really cool to be a part of it," Geelong midfielder Nina Morrison said.

"The high-scoring nature, the physicality of it, it was just a really entertaining game to be a part of. It's always nice when you feel that way on the field, then you come off and the supporters watching reinforce that as well. Obviously it would have been nice to get the win, but it was good to be able to play a good brand of footy."

Hawthorn counterpart Jas Fleming remembers the match with a touch more fondness than Morrison, given the three-goal triumph.

"It was a very hot contest. I think we'd only played Geelong the year before, and there was definitely some tensions already from the previous year, but it ended up being a great contest from both teams," she said.

"Very high scoring, and I think a great product of the AFLW and showing where it's going. Even as a player, you could feel it meant something out there."
A number of factors conflated to allow for such a high-scoring, free-flowing game, including a perfect combination of two attacking game-plans, increased skill and some defensive lapses about which neither coach would have been too thrilled.

"I think the way that we've tried to play – especially over the last couple of years – is a real focus on fundamentals and getting the skill level right. I think we've sort of illustrated that over the last couple of years with our disposal efficiency and the way we're able to move the ball," Morrison said.

"At the end of the day, being able to open the ground up and change angles and hit targets means that you can play a more free-flowing game of football that then ultimately ends in scoring. 

"Getting the ball in dangerous position, deeper entries – on one hand it's really good that we were able to score, there were probably times where we let our defence slip and let them get easy entries too much, which meant that they were scoring a lot as well. But it's good for the fans, and good viewing."

Fleming said the ground itself was also a factor in the high-quality contest, given the AFL-quality deck and the fully enclosed stadium, protected from the elements.

"I really enjoyed playing on GMHBA, I think the dimensions actually worked for us a bit. In terms of the skill level from both teams, I remember there was a high number of marks – especially from us – but very high scoring, too," she said.

"I think Geelong have some elite players, definitely in the midfield, whose skills are pretty insane. And I think from us, we had a really big jump, specifically in our skills from the previous season to last season, a new game plan that allowed that to kind of be showcased. 

"I think even looking back from my first season (2022, season seven) to now even, to be able to see the speed of the game, how much more I think the game has developed with every team, whether that's contest aerially, I think that's been a big thing too, especially for our team."

Then of course, there's the history between the two clubs. While transplanting men's rivalries into the women's game doesn't always work, there's just something about a Geelong-Hawthorn clash that whets the appetite.

"I think the first time we had Hawthorn on the fixture, it was definitely one that was circled as a game to (want to) win. Geelong and Hawthorn in the men's have had such a big rivalry for such a long time," Morrison said, speaking before the men's team had knocked off the Hawks in the preliminary final.

"I grew up a Cats supporter and watching those games was always a big event on the calendar. It's really cool to be involved in those matches now and off the back of last year's game as well, it's going to be certainly one that we want to win. 

"We've been in the (Thursday night, Grand Final weekend) time slot for a couple of years in a row now and it's just a great day to be a part of. Hopefully the boys are playing later that weekend as well but yeah, Thursday night footy down at GMHBA, it's a good place to be."

Fleming was also drafted to her childhood club, having been just four years old when the two clubs faced off in the 2008 Grand Final which kickstarted the modern iteration of the rivalry.

"I think that also adds to it, and why I think both Nina and I love [the match-up]. It's something that you grow up as a supporter, it's probably in your blood that as a Geelong fan, you're supposed to hate Hawthorn and vice versa," Fleming said.

"Joel Selwood came into the club last year (a visit as part of his role in the AFL footy operations team), and I had to tell him, 'I love you, but I really don't love you at the same time'. 

"It adds to the theatre of it and for the AFLW specifically, it allows fans to engage really well and obviously some men's footy fans to come in and see how we go. I can't wait to see it unfold this year."