AFL WOMEN’S Rankings: Round 6 2020

Of the four new AFLW teams in 2020, St. Kilda and the Gold Coast Suns have generally been competitive, and the West Coast Eagles and Richmond have not. Why?

On the weekend the AFLW’s four new teams played each other, and the results were not close. St. Kilda defeated Richmond by 39 points, holding the Tigers to just three points – the first goalless final score in AFLW. Meanwhile the Gold Coast Suns easily accounted for the West Coast Eagles by 25 points, with the Eagles scoring only one goal.

Both St. Kilda and Gold Coast have been reasonably competitive in their first season. The Suns remarkably are (just) still in the race for a finals spot in Conference A, with two wins and a draw and a percentage above 100. The Saints are out of the finals race in the tougher Conference B, but also have two wins and a percentage of 90 against generally strong opposition.

West Coast and Richmond on the other hand have easily been the two bottom teams this season. The Eagles have one win and the Tigers none, and both have a percentage below 40.

Why the difference?

Richmond are young and inexperienced

Richmond were one of the more favoured teams with the bookmakers going into the 2020 AFLW season, but in hindsight this may been wishful thinking. The Tigers were the youngest and most inexperienced team, with an average age of 23 years and barely over 100 games of experience. Thirteen of their players came from the 2019 draft. (Thank you to ‘AFLW Prospectus’ for age and experience figures – these would be a pain to compile myself!).

In addition, some of the players they did sign are probably not as productive as their reputations suggest. Monique Conti won the Bulldogs’ best and fairest in 2019, and has been a star again for the Tigers. Forwards Katie Brennan, Sabrina Frederick, and Christina Bernardi had question marks though. Brennan had played just 13 games in three seasons, and has missed games again this season. Frederick and Bernardi were inaccurate last season (Frederick kicked just one goal), and they have kicked 6.13 between them this season.

The AFLW has shown how young players can develop over time, with players that were teenagers when the competition began emerging as stars in their early twenties. The Tigers may have to wait a few years until those draft picks develop before emerging as a force in the women’s league.

West Coast does not have that ‘excuse’

The Eagles however were the fourth oldest team entering the season, with more experience than any other new side. Nine of their players were 28 years or older, compared to four of the Tigers.

However, of those experienced players probably only Dana Hooker and Emma Swanson have lived up to (or exceeded) expectations. Only one player – debutant Hayley Bullas – has kicked more than one goal for the season, while more experienced goalkickers such as Ashlee Atkins and Kellie Gibson have barely hit the scoreboard. On the positive side some young players have shown promise such as Bullas, first draft pick Imahra Cameron, and Mikayla Bowen.

Gold Coast are young too, but have mature stars

The Suns are relatively young as well, with the third-youngest list heading into the season. However some of their ‘older’ players have been very good this year. Lauren Ahrens, Hannah Dunn, and Kate Surman have each averaged over 12 disposals per game and are all 28 years old. Star player Jamie Stanton is younger at 24 years old, but had three prior seasons under her belt. Still there are some young stars for the future as well, such as 19 year old Jacqui Yorston who is averaging 13 disposals for the second straight season.

St. Kilda: the brightest future of all

None of the new teams though has a young core like St. Kilda, with 18 year old Georgia Patrikios and 20 year olds Olivia Vesely and Caitlin Greiser. Patrikios and Vesely have averaged over 15 disposals and six contested possessions per game. Greiser is the competition’s leading goalkicker, with ten goals including the match-winning goal against Melbourne. The Saints were the sixth-oldest team heading into the season, but many of their top players should be around for several years to come.

Perhaps this should not have been a surprise. The Southern Saints were very good in the VFLW last season. In hindsight, there was more evidence that they were better equipped for the AFLW than the Tigers were. They won’t make the finals, but the Saints should be pretty pleased with how their first season in the AFLW has panned out.