AS UNUSUAL as it sounds, Janelle Cuthbertson's broken cheekbone may have been the making of Emma O'Driscoll.

The young Fremantle defender's progress was fast-tracked this season without the safety net of playing alongside the All-Australian interceptor for six weeks.

"Going into the first game without her, we were a bit nervous, particularly about our match-ups. JC usually takes the key forward, the bigger body, and her contested work is fantastic. But I think not having her there, a lot of us had to step up, including myself," O'Driscoll told womens.afl.

"We couldn't rely on her being our last line of defence, and we really had to make sure we were winning our one-on-ones in order to stop the other team, because she wasn't always going to be back there to take some spectacular mark.

AFLW PRELIMS Get your FREE tickets here

"The likes of Laura Pugh, she's had a fantastic season, Ange Stannett as our lockdown defender, she racked up 21 disposals in one game recently, and Sarah Verrier got a Rising Star nom because her skill level is fantastic, I'd pick her to hit any kick on the field. Jess Low is new - and you would have seen her run-down tackle on Chloe Molloy - just really works hard.

"I think we just all collaborated, worked together in order to beat our opposition without her. Now she's back, it's made it easier for us, but we now have that confidence in each and every one of us to get the job done."

The 21-year-old O'Driscoll is still relatively new to football, having only picked it up in her final year of high school after playing a variety of sports, primarily netball.

While her average disposal count has only increased by 1.6 year-on-year, she's now averaging 3.0 marks a game, up from 0.8 in 2021.

"I definitely think I've taken my own game to a new level, and I think that comes down to having played more footy. Like most of the girls, having switched sports does make it hard, so I think having more exposure to the game has allowed me to be more confident in my skills," she said.

"I've also noticed I've been doing more counter-attacking, being able to run off and be involved when we're moving the ball forward. I'm really glad I'm more confident in my play."

The exuberant O'Driscoll also made a splash on social media this year, whether it was through her gymnastics-inspired post-win acrobatic routine or her Melbourne hub musical performances with teammate Laura Pugh.

"I did do some gymnastics growing up, and a bit of acro-dancing – I was never good at any other type of dance, my rhythm and coordination aren't that great, and I couldn't make it any further in that world, because I'm certainly not flexible enough, my hamstrings don't allow it.

"Hayley Miller's really good at handstands, and during pre-season different girls would challenge her at the end of training. I decided to do a cartwheel instead, thinking everyone could do it, and then I told them I could do a backflip, and they didn't believe me."

DREAM STREAM How to catch every AFLW match in 2022

O'Driscoll revealed the mastermind behind the music videos was Pugh, who brought a Kmart karaoke microphone and recorder across from Perth while the Dockers were in the Melbourne hub.

"We'll put it down to cabin fever. We love Melbourne, but we were in these little serviced apartments, and at the time, we could only have one buddy to have dinner with, just to minimise close contact rules," O'Driscoll said.

"Laura is one of the funniest humans I know, and her combined with my, I guess, extravagant personality, made us get the microphone out and start these performances. And it escalated from there, where if we won, we'd perform in front of the group.

"I look at these really raw AFLW videos (the Unfiltered series), Vescio talking about their non-binary status, Kaity Ashmore did one as well, and I think it's important we show who we are and our personalities, and how better to do that than through our socials?"

Did you head to the footy over the weekend? Tell us your thoughts! Take the survey now