A review of all the action from Round 11 of the 2024 rebel VFLW season.
GEELONG CATS vs WESTERN BULLDOGS
GEELONG CATS 0.0 0.0 0.0 1.2 (8)
WESTERN BULLDOGS 4.0 6.2 8.6 12.7 (79)
WESTERN Bulldogs continued their brilliant rebel VFLW season, holding Geelong scoreless for three quarters on their way to a thumping 71-point victory at Avalon Airport Oval on Saturday.
The Bulldogs had never previously kicked more than four goals against the Cats but had that number on the board by quarter-time as last week’s match-sealer Jaimi Tabb picked up where she left off by slamming on the opening two goals.
They continued on their merry way to record the second-highest score in their VFLW history, banking a sixth-consecutive win to move into the top two and end Geelong’s slim finals aspirations.
The Cats did not scoring until the returning Gabby Deller kicked a behind in the 12th minute of the last term before Hannah Burchell found them a major three minutes later.
The Bulldogs’ forward line was unstoppable as Tabb, Mali McLeod and VFLW games record holder Mia-Rae Clifford kicked three goals each – Tabb adding 11 tackles to lock the ball in and Clifford pulling in five marks.
They feasted on the midfield dominance of Millie Klingbeil (22 disposals, five clearances, six entries, one goal), who bounced back from a quiet outing against the Southern Saints to be best afield, Dom Carbone (18 disposals, six clearances) and ruck Keeley Hardingham (15 disposals, 28 hitouts, five tackles)
Youngster Lily Jordan (18 disposals, six clearances, seven tackles) was clearly Geelong’s best, while Sophie Mahar (14 disposals, five marks, seven tackles) had her best VFLW game and Burchell and Caitlin Reid tried hard.
CARLTON vs CASEY DEMONS
CARLTON 1.0 3.1 5.1 5.2 (32)
CASEY DEMONS 1.2 2.4 5.5 6.6 (42)
CASEY Demons moved into the top six and put paid to Carlton’s season, kicking a late goal to hold off the Blues by 10 points at IKON Park.
In a game that seesawed throughout the first half, the Blues led at the main break with a goal on the siren to Izzy Khoury, but Niamh O’Neill and best-on-ground Meg Macdonald landed a one-two punch in the opening minutes of the third term for Casey before Olivia Morris stretched the lead to a game-high 15.
The home team hit back with two late goals to set up a nervy final term, but the Demons held firm and O’Neill’s second goal at the eight-minute mark proved to be the only major and sealed the deal.
There was nothing between the teams on the overall numbers, but Casey’s midfield was the difference as Macdonald (32 disposals, seven clearances, 11 tackles, five inside-50s, one goal) had her own footy, Zoe Mitchell (23 disposals, six tackles) and Shree Fairchild (19 disposals, seven tackles) rode shotgun and Tegan Williams (22 disposals, seven marks, seven rebounds) dominated in defence.
Octavia Di Donato (19 disposals, six rebounds) was terrific down back for Carlton on her return from suspension and Isla Baldwin (17 disposals, five clearances, five tackles), Simone Mooney (16 disposals, five clearances, seven tackles) and Eliza Wood (17 disposals, nine tackles) were strong through the middle.
ESSENDON vs BOX HILL HAWKS
ESSENDON 0.0 3.3 6.3 6.3 (39)
BOX HILL HAWKS 1.1 1.1 1.2 4.5 (29)
ESSENDON stretched its undefeated run against Box Hill Hawks to eight and consigned the Hawks to being the third club to lose their 100-game milestone match.
The Bombers turned up the heat through the middle two quarters and hung on to win by 10 points at Windy Hill to retain fourth-spot on the ladder.
Essendon now six wins and two draws in its past eight games against the Hawks but this one shaped as their biggest challenge given their rivals were on top of the ladder – and it appeared that would be the case when Cassie Davidson kicked truly for the visitors in the opening 30 seconds of the match.
But that was the only goal of the first term as the teams went 18 minutes without scoring before Essendon finally got on the board through a Sarah Perkins miss on club debut against her old team and a Tayla Hart-Aluni goal early in the second quarter.
The home team took complete control from there, slamming on 6.3 to 0.1 through the middle two quarters to put the game to bed before Box Hill kicked 3.3 to nothing in the last stanza to put some respectability on the board.
Essendon produced a real team effort to get over the line, although Ruby Mahony led all comers with 21 disposals, with experienced recruit Christina Bernardi (13 disposals, 11 tackles), Ash Melnikas (14 disposals, six tackles, five rebounds), Maddison Ford and captain El Chaston putting in strong efforts and Olivia Manfre kicking two goals.
Veteran star Tamara Luke continued her outstanding season for Box Hill, picking up 18 touches, five marks, six clearances, 23 hitouts and five inside-50s in a dominant effort.
Caitlin Thorne (19 disposals, five marks, 10 clearances, 12 tackles, one goal), debutant Stasia Stevenson (16 disposals, five tackles) and Rosie Dillon (16 disposals, five marks) were also impressive.
NORTH MELBOURNE vs DAREBIN FALCONS
NORTH MELBOURNE 0.4 3.6 4.7 5.7 (37)
DAREBIN FALCONS 1.0 2.0 4.1 5.1 (31)
NORTH Melbourne is one step closer to its maiden finals appearance after a mid-game burst helped it hold off Darebin’s resurgence in a six-point thriller in the second match of the Avalon Airport Oval double header on Saturday.
The Kangaroos wasted their opportunities early against the efficient Falcons, conceding the opening two goals as they sprayed six behinds before Emily Paterno finally kicked their first major at the 14-minute mark of the second quarter.
It sparked a remarkable onslaught as Nyakoat Dojiok (17th minute), Mackie Sutcliffe (18th) and Paterno again (1st minute of the third) piled on four goals in seven minutes in a game-breaking period either side of half-time.
And although Monique De Matteo hit back with two in two minutes to cut the margin back inside a goal later in the third, there were to be only fleeting opportunities to follow and a single goal each in the last term (including Dojiok’s second) as the Roos held on.
North’s third straight win lifted it to fifth spot as it used a handball game to cut through the Falcons and earn a 33-16 inside-50 advantage while also laying 109 tackles to 85.
Renee Tierney (33 disposals, 23 handballs, seven clearances, nine tackles), Maddie Di Cosmo (27 disposals, five clearances, 10 tackles, five inside-50s), Alana Barba (20 disposals, 10 tackles) and Audrey Rhodes (15 disposals, 12 tackles, five entries) were fierce in the contest and Kate Reynolds (37 hitouts, seven tackles) controlled the taps.
Ange Gogos (22 disposals, nine clearances, seven tackles) and Alyssa Mifsud (21 disposals, five clearances, 10 tackles) again put up big numbers for the Falcons as they fell just short of a fourth-straight triumph, with Caitlin Bunker (16 disposals, eight tackles), Sam Baisis (10 tackles), Nicole Callinan and Victoria Blackwood also strong.
COLLINGWOOD vs SOUTHERN SAINTS
COLLINGWOOD 1.1 2.5 2.8 3.8 (26)
SOUTHERN SAINTS 2.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 (29)
DEANNA Jolliffe put the exclamation mark on a best-afield performance with a match-winning mark inside defensive 50 to help the Southern Saints snap an eight-match losing streak with a three-point win over Collingwood at the AIA Centre on Sunday.
While not being the most prolific player on the ground, Jolliffe was the impassable object as she won 16 disposals, took nine marks and delivered seven rebound-50s to lift the Saints up three spots from the bottom with their second win over the Magpies this season.
Seven of the Saints’ eight defeats had been by three goals or less, so they were never far off the mark, and they built their confidence early, kicking three of the first four goals to lead by 10 points at half-time before defending stoutly as the match went 41 minutes without a major for either team.
Collingwood star Jordan Ivey (13 disposals, 2.3) won a foot race against Georgia Foran to break that stalemate with 3:23 left on the clock, making for a desperate finish as the Magpies pressed repeatedly for a winner, only for their late charge to be thwarted by Jolliffe.
And although she put the kick out on the full there was no way an ambitious Akayla Peterson was going to kick the goal after the siren from 70m.
Tessa Boyd (25 disposals, seven marks, five rebounds) and Foran (18 disposals, four marks, five rebounds) were almost as effective in defence for the Saints, wing Winnie Laing (24 disposals) starred again in her 50th VFLW game and Ali Hynes (32 hitouts, six tackles) put in a lion-hearted effort in an unfamiliar ruck role.
Lambert-Pearce medallist Peterson (22 disposals, four marks, six entries) continually pumped the ball forward for Collingwood, especially in those desperate final minutes.
Maya Ellin was a terrier around the contest with 12 tackles, Megan Ryan (18 disposals, 20 hitouts) made her presence felt in the ruck, Kasey Lennox (14 disposals, five rebounds) worked hard down back and Kaitlyn Day (19 disposals, one goal) was always dangerous in attack.
PORT MELBOURNE vs WILLIAMSTOWN
PORT MELBOURNE 4.2 4.2 4.3 5.4 (34)
WILLIAMSTOWN 0.2 2.9 3.11 4.12 (36)
WILLIAMSTOWN took reigning premier Port Melbourne’s best shot in the first term before climbing off the canvas and fighting back to claim a thrilling two-point win to climb to the top of the rebel VFLW ladder for the first time in its history
Spurred on by a big reunion crowd at ETU Stadium for their 150th birthday celebration., the Borough slammed on four unanswered goals in the first quarter, reprising their premiership-winning form from last year and leaving a team chasing 7½ wins from their past eight matches shellshocked.
But the Seagulls turned the contest around in the second quarter, with only terrible kicking for goal stopping them taking the lead by half-time.
That included Rohenna Young Medal leader Sharnie Whiting kicked 2.1 in a five-minute patch but the visitors ended with 2.7 for the term to trail by five points at the main break.
Port again found scoring hard to come by in the third, with a solitary rushed behind as Emily Eaves gave Williamstown the lead and a wonderful snap from veteran first-year ruck Cat O’Bryan almost made the comeback win secure for the Seagulls
Kaitlyn O’Keefe’s second goal for Port Melbourne with nine minutes left set up an epic finish that was battled out with no further addition to the board either way.
The Borough had 56 more disposals – Willy won despite having only 146 possessions for the day – but lost the clearance (38-30) and inside-50 (28-26) counts as the Seagulls took the more direct route home.
Eaves (14 disposals, six clearances, 10 tackles, one goal) was critical and Ash Thorneycroft (13 disposals, nine tackles), Megan Williamson (12 disposals, eight tackles), Whiting (nine disposals, two goals) and O’Bryan (nine disposals, 32 hitouts, five clearances, one goal) were all vital to the win.
Eloise Ashley-Cooper starred for the reigning premiers with a game-high 18 touches, eight tackles and a goal, with Emily Harley (15 disposals, five clearances), Georgia Booth (14 disposals, seven tackles) and ruck Beth Wilson (nine disposals, 11 hitouts, eight tackles until injured in the third quarter) all being important.
