WITH national pride on the line, Jasmine Garner and Orla O’Dwyer have been named captains of Australia and Ireland respectively for Saturday's sold-out 2026 NAB AFLW clash at North Sydney Oval.

Among the competition's most accomplished players, the pair will lead their nations in the representative fixture, adding international captaincy honours to their football résumés.

Elected North Melbourne captain ahead of the 2025 season, Garner led the club to a premiership in her first year in the role. She spent five years in the Kangaroos' leadership group, including several seasons as vice-captain under Emma Kearney.

“It's a huge honour to captain any club and to captain your country. It's massive, and something I'm incredibly proud of,” Garner told AFL.com.au.

“I don't know if there's much I'm going to be able to do with the team that we've got. There are a lot of stars in there, so I'll just bring my calmness and let the girls go about their business.”

Meanwhile, dual premiership Brisbane midfielder O’Dwyer will lead Ireland in her first formal captaincy role in Australian football.

“It's such an honour. Having the captaincy makes you want to play even more, and I'm really excited to take charge,” O’Dwyer said. 

“I have some real big leaders alongside me on the Irish team — girls who are already in leadership groups, captains themselves, or even captains back home playing Gaelic football. 

“It's going to be a great game that shows just how successful the Irish AFLW players have been. We have a lot of girls who've been All-Australian or Best and Fairest (winners), so there's great depth and plenty of experience. I'm super proud to put on the Irish jumper, get out there, and play.”

The captains headline the 25-player squads announced last month, which include some of the competition's biggest names and emerging talent. 

The Australian squad includes reigning AFLW Best and Fairest and dual North Melbourne premiership player Ash Riddell, reigning Telstra AFLW Rising Star Zippy Fish, and midfield stalwarts Ebony Marinoff of Adelaide and Monique Conti of Richmond.

Joining O’Dwyer in the Irish squad are Geelong’s Aishling Moloney, Fremantle’s Aisling McCarthy, Brisbane’s Jennifer Dunne, and Adelaide’s Niamh Kelly.

“I played back home at county level with Aishling Moloney, Aisling McCarthy, and Niamh Martin, so to play with them again is a huge privilege,” O’Dwyer added. 

“For us Irish players, it feels more like a reunion than strangers getting to know each other. We all know each other and who we play for, which will be an advantage when we come together.”

Two-time North Melbourne premiership coach Darren Crocker will guide Australia, while first-year Sydney mentor Colin O’Riordan will coach Ireland.

The match will be the first AFLW representative fixture since the one-off State of Origin game in 2017.

Unlike traditional international rules games, the match will be played under Australian Football rules using a Sherrin football.

When asked whether she would like to see a hybrid Gaelic/Australian Football format in the future, O'Dwyer noted it would be especially sweet to beat Australia on its own terms.

“It's definitely an interesting idea. The compromise rules (format) is such a fun game to watch as a mix between the two, but having this first one as pure Aussie Rules is great,” she said. 

“It allows us to try and beat the Aussies at their own game. But it's also what we've learned and grown into out here. For the AFLW competition and building the fanbase, playing (under) official rules is really important, so we'll see where it goes from there.”

The 2026 NAB AFLW Australia v Ireland match kicks off at 4.15pm AEST and will be broadcast live nationally across Fox Footy, Kayo Sports, Kayo Freebies, and Binge. Fans can visit AUSVIRL.AFL for match details or to join the Ticketmaster waitlist if extra tickets are released.

AUSTRALIA SQUAD

Chelsea Biddell (Adelaide, South Australia)

Libby Birch (North Melbourne, Victoria)

Monique Conti (Richmond, Victoria)

Sophie Conway (Brisbane, Queensland)

Harriet Cordner (Carlton, Victoria)

Zippy Fish (Sydney, Western Australia)

Jasmine Garner (North Melbourne, Victoria)

Maddi Gay (Essendon, Victoria)

Tahlia Gillard (Melbourne, Victoria)

Tyla Hanks (Melbourne, Victoria)

Courtney Hodder (Brisbane, Western Australia)

Kate Hore (Melbourne, Victoria)

Breanna Koenen (Brisbane, Queensland)

Ebony Marinoff (Adelaide, South Australia)

Ellie McKenzie (Richmond, Victoria)

Chloe Molloy (Sydney, Victoria)

Nina Morrison (Geelong, Victoria)

Georgie Prespakis (Geelong, Victoria)

Tahlia Randall (North Melbourne, Queensland)

Ash Riddell (North Melbourne, Victoria)

Ella Roberts (West Coast, Western Australia)

Matilda Scholz (Port Adelaide, South Australia)

Tyanna Smith (St Kilda, Victoria)

Mim Strom (Fremantle, Western Australia)

Charlie Thomas (West Coast, Western Australia)

IRELAND SQUAD

Blaithin Bogue (North Melbourne, Fermanagh)

Amy Boyle-Carr (Adelaide, Donegal)

Kayleigh Cronin (Adelaide, Kerry)

Neasa Dooley (Brisbane, Kildare)

Jen Dunne (Brisbane, Dublin)

Dayna Finn (Carlton, Mayo)

Clara Fitzpatrick (Gold Coast, Bryansford)

Erone Fitzpatrick (Carlton, Laois)

Amy Gavin Mangan (North Melbourne, Offaly)

Sinead Goldrick (Melbourne, Dublin)

Rachel Kearns (Geelong, Mayo)

Niamh Kelly (Adelaide, Mayo)

Tanya Kennedy (Sydney, Donegal)

Orlagh Lally (Fremantle, Meath)

Niamh Martin (Hawthorn, Tipperary)

Aisling McCarthy (Fremantle, Tipperary)

Paris McCarthy (Sydney, Kerry)

Aine McDonagh (Hawthorn, Galway)

Niamh McLaughlin (Gold Coast, Donegal)

Aishling Moloney (Geelong, Tipperary)

Eilish O'Dowd (GWS, Leitrim)

Orla O'Dwyer (Brisbane, Tipperary)

Erika O'Shea (North Melbourne, Cork)

Sarah Rowe (Collingwood, Mayo)

Vikki Wall (North Melbourne, Meath)