NORTH Melbourne qualified for its second finals series in its three-year history but crashed out in a semi-final to Collingwood after leading by 14 points at three-quarter time.
The Roos absolutely dominated games against expansion sides, building up their percentage nicely, but struggled with most above them on the ladder.
Over the next few weeks, womens.afl will look at each of the seasons of the 14 AFLW teams in reverse ladder order.
WHO'S HANGING UP THE BOOTS? Your club's retiring players
Coach: Darren Crocker
Leadership group: Emma Kearney (captain), Jasmine Garner, Emma King, Ash Riddell
2021 home and away finishing position: Sixth, six wins and three losses, 142.5 per cent. Lost semi-final to Collingwood by six points.
Best team performance: Geelong 1.3 (9) lost to North Melbourne 11.5 (71) in round one.
North Melbourne's defence prevented Geelong from hitting the scoreboard until the last quarter, as it flexed its considerable muscle in a dominant four-quarter performance. Emma King kicked three first-quarter goals, Ellie Gavalas added three from the midfield while Jas Garner had a day out with 18 touches and two goals.
Best individual performance: With North Melbourne's season effectively on the line, Ash Riddell rose to the occasion. In round nine's torrid clash with Fremantle, Riddell ran riot in the midfield, recording 33 disposals, 492m gained, nine clearances and seven inside 50s.
NAB AFLW Rising Star nominations: Daisy Bateman
Debutants: Brooke Brown, Bella Eddey, Georgia Hammond, Alice O'Loughlin (AFLW debuts); Grace Campbell (club debut)
Delistings: Georgia Hammond, Katelyn Cox
Most improved: Rebound defender Aileen Gilroy starred in her second AFLW season, the Irishwoman somehow improving after a fifth-placed best-and-fairest finish in 2020. Her numbers didn't change too much year-on-year, but her kicking accuracy – particularly over long distances – caught the eye and she was a real attacking weapon for the Roos.
Star recruit: Playing primarily up forward after starting her career as an inside midfielder at Richmond, Grace Campbell was a ferocious competitor in her first season at North Melbourne. While she didn't overly trouble the scorers, kicking two goals from eight games, Campbell added a much-needed intensity to the Roos, averaging 9.4 disposals and 4.4 tackles.
Unsung hero: Key back Danielle Hardiman just puts her head down and gets the job done, week after week. The 26-year-old is usually found on the last line of defence, busily occupied by a combination of one of the opposition's best talls and patrolling the goal line. Hardiman has now played 22 games for the Roos after crossing from Carlton.
What worked:
- The deepest midfield in the competition just kept ticking along in 2021, proving to be difficult to completely shut down for all four quarters. The Roos averaged the most marks and effective kicks and second-most disposals and clearances in the competition, with the likes of Emma Kearney, Jas Garner, Ash Riddell, Jenna Bruton, Ellie Gavalas and Mia King rotating well.
- Jess Duffin made an impressive return from a season off due to pregnancy. Missing the first four games with an adductor injury and the need to build conditioning, the star intercept defender instantly added some stability to an at-times panicky North defence. She averaged 13.5 disposals and 3.2 marks.
What needs improvement:
- The Roos struggled to stop some of the more powerful teams when they got on a roll, coughing up six goals in a term against Melbourne, and three straight to Collingwood in the last quarter of the semi-final loss. They got caught out when the ball hit the deck close to their opponents' goal too many times for a top side.
- The only top-six side North Melbourne defeated was Fremantle, in a tightly fought game to lock up a finals spot. For a side that's chock full of talent, it arguably underperformed, losing to Brisbane, Melbourne and Collingwood (twice). Both the Lions and the Pies applied a high-pressure game to North, preventing the kick-mark possession game that holds them in such strong stead against weak teams.
BEST AND FAIREST WRAP Who was your club champion?
Early call for 2022: It's a (possibly overly) simple equation for North Melbourne – beat more of the top sides and move up the ladder. The Roos well and truly have the bulk of the puzzle pieces in place to feature late in the finals series, but there's just something that hasn't quite clicked up until this point.
Season rating: 7.5/10
