HERE'S a quick look back at round three of the NAB AFL Women's competition.
Highest score
- Adelaide, 10.6 (66) v Geelong. It was the Crows' highest score since round seven of the 2017 season, when they booted 70 points against Collingwood.
Lowest score
- Collingwood, 2.6 (18) v Fremantle. The Magpies doubled their score of nine points from round two.
Most disposals
- Ebony Marinoff (Adelaide), 33
- Anne Hatchard (Adelaide), 27
- Karen Paxman (Melbourne), 24
- Jenna Bruton (North Melbourne), 22
- Lauren Pearce (Melbourne), 21
- Ally Anderson (Brisbane), 21
- Maddy Prespakis (Carlton), 21
Leading goalkicker for the round
- Courteney Munn (North Melbourne), 4
Overall leading goalkickers
- Stevie-Lee Thompson (Adelaide), 5
- Jess Wuetschner (Brisbane), 5
New record
- Disposals – 33, Ebony Marinoff (Adelaide), surpassing Emma Kearney's 30 in round six of the 2017 season for the Western Bulldogs.
- Handball receives – 16, Ebony Marinoff (Adelaide)
- Hardball gets – 11, Lauren Pearce (Melbourne)
- Effective short kicks – 11, Maddy Prespakis (Carlton)
Injuries
- Courtney Gum (Greater Western Sydney), left quad cork
- Brianna Moyes (Fremantle), knee
- Ash Brazill (Collingwood), concussion
- Brittany Bonnici (Collingwood), bruised ribs
- Leah Kaslar (Brisbane), left calf
NORTH MELBOURNE 8.5 (53) def WESTERN BULLDOGS 3.4 (22)
- An impressive five-goal second term did the damage, with North going into half-time with a 30-point lead. The Bulldogs did well to halt the onslaught and got a few goals on the board themselves in the second half.
- Key forward Courteney Munn was the shock hero for the Kangaroos. Earmarked as a developing key forward at the start of pre-season, the former Southern Saint has surprised even the Roos' coaching staff with her rapid development. She kicked four goals in her debut game, including a stunning one with a dribble kick.
- All eyes were on former Bulldogs Emma Kearney and Jenna Bruton as they faced their former club. Kearney was busy with 17 touches but Bruton took her game to a new level with a career-high 22.
- The Bulldogs pushed co-captain Katie Brennan up the ground in an attempt to provide a strong-marking link between the back and forward lines. It worked to an extent, but it was a case of robbing Peter to pay Paul, with the forward line missing a target.
ARE YOU JOKING?
— AFL Women's (@aflwomens) February 15, 2019
Four goals on debut so far for Courteney Munn!#AFLWNorthDogs #AFLW pic.twitter.com/4g8rIKHdo3
CARLTON 10.5 (65) def GREATER WESTERN SYDNEY 5.6 (36)
- Carlton's win was its first in more than a year. Its previous victory was in round two last year (also against the Giants) in a storm-affected match that saw captain Brianna Davey tear her right ACL.
- Young midfielder Maddy Prespakis and key forward Tayla Harris are forming a strong connection, with Prespakis setting up Harris for shots at goal. Prespakis and Harris both kicked three goals.
- Forward Yvonne Bonner was the Giants' best player in just her third game of Australian football. The Irish Gaelic player was a strong marking target up the ground and ran hard to provide an option. And she kicked a superb goal that should be a contender for goal of the year.
- Alyce Parker will be double-checking just who the recipient of a free kick is in the future, after Davey drew a 50-metre penalty by asking for the ball when it was Prespakis' free kick. Parker had an opportunity to immediately negate the resulting Carlton goal, but hit the post with her set shot.
THAT HAS TO BE A GOAL OF THE YEAR CONTENDER!
— AFL Women's (@aflwomens) February 16, 2019
What a goal from @gwsgiants forward Yvonne Bonner 😵#AFLWGIANTSBlues #AFLW #GenW pic.twitter.com/sXDVJNC3Rh
FREMANTLE 7.9 (51) def COLLINGWOOD 2.6 (18)
- Fremantle has three wins from three matches, but faces its biggest challenge next week against Adelaide in Darwin.
- Another seven goals ensured the Dockers remained the highest scoring team in the competition, with the multi-pronged forward line of Ebony Antonio, Kellie Gibson, Gemma Houghton and Ashley Sharp difficult to counter.
- It's no secret Collingwood is severely undermanned due to expansion team signings and injury, but the medical team will be wrapping two of its stars in cotton wool this week. Key back Ash Brazill, who would already be on the radar of All Australian judges after three games, suffered a concussion, while strong midfielder Britt Bonnici was diagnosed with bruised ribs.
- The Magpies need more power all over the ground, but particularly in the engine room. They lost the disposal count 168-205, inside 50s 23-43 and clearances 17-27. This was despite Eliza Hynes and Brazill dominating the hit-outs 36-15.
The @freodockers are off to an incredible start!#AFLWFreoPies #AFLW pic.twitter.com/oRty7b4bXn
— AFL Women's (@aflwomens) February 16, 2019
ADELAIDE 10.6 (66) def GEELONG 6.1 (37)
- The Crows were full of run in an impressive display of attacking footy, booting their second-highest score. Left-footed midfielder Ebony Marinoff, the 2017 NAB AFLW Rising Star, set a new mark for total disposals in a game with 33, three more than the previous best. Teammate Anne Hatchard finished with 27 disposals (18 handballs) and kicked a goal.
- Adelaide controlled possession (254 disposals to 170), had a massive 25 more inside 50s than the Cats (41-16) and won contested possessions by 27.
- Adelaide co-captain Erin Phillips showed her class with three goals, including a beauty from close to the boundary line to open the scoring.
- The Cats welcomed back captain Melissa Hickey and experienced on-baller/forward Richelle Cranston, but were generally overwhelmed in their first game outside Victoria. Forward Danielle Orr provided a highlight with a brilliant running left-foot goal in the third quarter.
Sublime stuff from Danielle Orr! #AFLWCrowsCats pic.twitter.com/7TvWeCRpY0
— AFL Women's (@aflwomens) February 17, 2019
MELBOURNE 9.6 (60) def BRISBANE 3.3 (21)
- The Demons set the win up with five unanswered goals in the second quarter, heading into the main break 40 points up.
- Aliesha Newman was the star for the winners, with the speedy forward booting three goals in the opening half, including a ripper after two bounces.
- Melbourne midfielder Karen Paxman led all players with 24 disposals. She also took two marks and had four tackles.
- The Lions are trying to stay competitive while introducing new players, a tough predicament for a team that has reached the Grand Final in the first two seasons. Some of their more experienced players are struggling, which simply compounds the problem.