With the Women's Draft set to open, we thought we’d go through the most frequently asked questions and what this means for potential players looking to get into the Brisbane Lions Women's Team.
How is the list built?
Each Club is to have two marquee players with the intention to:
- Ensure best players are evenly distributed across Clubs for competitive balance
- Engage players to promote the Clubs and League
Brisbane were then allowed to have two priority picks. i) for competitive balance reasons, ii) to support Club strategy or iii) to reflect existing player-Club relationships.
The Lions picked up Queenslander Emma Zielke as the current State Team Captain and dual League B & F winner. Emma has also been working at the Lions for the past three years.
With one more pick to come before the draft the club is looking to strengthen up its midfield with the states most prolific hard ball winner Jordan Zanchetta out with a season ending ACL injury.
AFL Clubs can sign up to two (2) players on top of the 25 primary list spots as Rookies. These players must meet the following criteria:
- Have not played a game of community/state football in the past 3 years, up to June 15th, 2016 (date of the women’s license announcement); and
- Must be approved by the AFL
How have players been identified?
The Lions Head Coach (Craig Starcevich) and CEO Breeanna Brock have been assessing talent from all over Queensland over the last year to identify the best footballers the state has to offer. The best 40 players in SEQ have been attending the Women’s State Academy all year and been through the same testing that we recently did throughout North Queensland.
They both regularly attend local games to also asses the level of game sense and match fitness players are displaying. With the QWAFL finals coming up, the interest on how players handle the pressure of finals could be a key factor in player selection for the 2017 Lions Team.
Earlier in the year the AFL held a Rookie search day that had 40 players attend and the Lions have just completed a 4 day North Queensland trip to allow players in those local leagues a chance to show their wares.
Any players or non AFL athletes interested in trying out for the team need to now nominate for the draft.
How will the Women's Draft work?
The AFL will be opening the draft tomorrow (1st Sept), but it will not be a traditional draft like the men’s. As the competition is just starting and player wages won’t be sufficient enough to allow for players to move interstate, clubs will select 22 players through State based drafts.
This means players based in QLD can nominate for the Lions and would not have to move if they are selected. Players can only nominate in one State but are free to choose which State (note there will be no relocation costs covered by either the AFL or the club if a player chooses to move States)
To allow maximum opportunity for the best players to be involved in the Women’s League, Clubs select their final 3 players through free agency, over a 2 week period following the completion of the draft. Clubs can select players from within their own State or any other State/Territory (or overseas).
Only players who nominated for the draft will be eligible to be signed.
Once the draft closes on the 30th Sept the Brisbane Lions will be holding a final selection day on the 2nd Oct (Venue TBA) to see all interested parties try out for final selection. Nominees will need to get to Brisbane at their own cost for this final process.
The draft will then be held on the 12th Oct.
When will training begin?
Pre-Season will begin on November 21st with a short break over Christmas.
When will the games be played?
The AFL will be scheduling games for early February, until the end of March. At this time there is gap in the sporting calendar giving our games some space to really grab people’s attention! Games may be paired with men's NAB Challenge games as double headers.
The season will see all teams play each other once, with a two-week finals series.
We are hopeful that we will get four home games which will be confirmed in October when the fixture is released.
Will the Women's Team wear the same guernsey as the men?
The Brisbane Lions decided to keep the women's uniform as similar to the men’s as possible, so that we all feel part of the same Club. Keep an eye out for some feminine twists though!
Where will the Women's team play, as the Gabba will have Cricket on at the same time?
We are currently looking at several local venues to host our home games, which will give us great engagement opportunities with the grassroots footy community.
Who are the other teams in the competition?
- Adelaide Crows
- Carlton Blues
- Collingwood Magpies
- Fremantle Dockers
- GWS Giants
- Melbourne Demons
- Western Bulldogs
Have any more questions? Tweet us @brisbanelions, and we will do our best to get back to you as soon as possible.
Visit the Brisbane Lions Women's Team Hub for all of the latest news.
