And so history was made... eventually
Daisy Pearce's Eagles are in the finals for the first time after a final round that had the lot.
Good morning WA football fans!
It’s an especially good one for those of you who have been following West Coast’s AFLW side since inception. It’s been a grind, but the tide has finally turned.
The Eagles are in the finals for the first time in the W program’s history. We’ll get into the nuts and bolts of it shortly, but take a moment to bask in the milestone.
Before we get into it, a quick note about how things will roll from here now that the AFLW season is into its final stages.
We’ll obviously be covering the Eagles’ AFLW finals series but from next week the focus will also shift to the AFL and AFLW drafts, with weekly profiles of some of the best young prospects out of WA.
There will still be some free content in the Monday edition, but those profiles will be for paid-up Jumper Punches members only. Draft coverage will roll all the way through to late December, post-AFLW selections.
In today’s newsletter: The Eagles do a Bradbury, a fitting farewell for a veteran, the young talent they’ll lean on in September, why the Dockers’ demise isn’t coming yet and how Freo balance the offseason.
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AFLW EAGLES
West Coast’s time is now. The Eagles did it the hard way, but one of the most promising young lists in the AFLW is playing finals for the first time. They face Carlton in an elimination final at IKON Park this Saturday, 12.05pm WA time.
When I say they did it the hard way… the Eagles went into last Friday’s game against the Blues at Sullivan Logistics Stadium needing a win to guarantee their spot in finals. They couldn’t do it. The Blues kicked away late after a relatively even first three quarters to win by 20 points. At that point the Coasters were shot, needing Essendon - who had lost their past eight games straight - to upset a classy Sydney outfit in Coffs Harbour.
You knew something weird was in the offing when the Swans-Bombers fixture was delayed because of lightning strikes. The deck and the weather were horrendous, and it worked in the Bombers’ favour. They kicked two goals early and it proved to be enough. Despite some late Zippy Fish magic, the Bombers held on for the upset of the season - and granted the Eagles a finals berth in the process.
Some would argue that this West Coast side are in finals ahead of time. I don’t share that view - and it’s a moot point anyway, because now that they are there I don’t expect them to leave for years. Ella Roberts is built for the post-season. Lauren Wakfer is one of the most promising young forward-rucks going around. Georgie Cleaver took massive strides this season and looks a future All-Australian. And that’s just scratching the surface of their talent, with the likes of Charlie Thomas and Bella Lewis entering their prime.
It’s fitting that Dana Hooker gets at least one more game. One of the most important female footballers in Western Australia - when the AFLW was in its infancy she was the star leading the way. Congrats on an unreal career.
AFLW DOCKERS
This was probably Fremantle’s second-most frustrating season in the AFLW. The one where the AFL cancelled the season thanks to COVID and left it unresolved with the Dockers sitting undefeated going into a prelim will never be beaten. But this was up there. Take out two games and they looked very solid. Unfortunately those two games were historic 100-point and 70-point losses at home. Lisa Webb and her staff face a long off-season figuring out how the hell that inconsistency happened and how to resolve it.
In the end, their future was still in their hands. If they beat Adelaide yesterday, they would have played finals. They just couldn’t get it done. And unfortunately it was the same problem - they were winning the battle in the middle and in defence, but couldn’t get a score on the board.
On a positive note, reports of their decline earlier in the season proved unfounded. Gabby Newton’s step up this season gives them a new potency in the middle, Indi Strom proved a first-year revelation in defence, and Georgie Brisbane showed signs she can develop into a very promising key forward.
Their balance this off-season will be fascinating. They need to find some top-end young mids to start developing behind veterans like Aisling McCarthy and Kiara Bowers. But they also need more forward-line strike power now - do they find that at the trade table? And how much do you give up for it?
That’s the lot for today. Thanks again for reading.
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Catch you next week.