Brisbane has made a statement leading into finals, defeating Euro-Yroke by 27 points on Sunday to put pressure on Hawthorn in the race for second place and the McClelland Trophy.
It was a statement game from the reigning premier, with the 10.8 (68) to 6.5 (41) scoreline largely driven in short, but devastating bursts of attacking on the RSEA Park deck.
But a late shoulder injury to important midfielder Sophie Conway has soured the win. The 2023 All-Australian landed heavily on her right shoulder late in the game, pounding the ground before being helped from the field.
Typically a winger, Conway (27 disposals, two goals) worked largely through the midfield for the match, pairing beautifully with energiser Belle Dawes (20 disposals, nine tackles), with the latter often winning the hardball and feeding it out to a perfectly positioned Conway on the move outside the scramble.
Ahead of an eighth finals series in nine seasons, and in its first trip to RSEA Park since last year's shock loss, Brisbane was determined to come out and make a statement. It whacked the Saints between the eyes in the first quarter, with its second highest ever opening-quarter score across 90 games.
The swirling wind offered an advantage toward the South Road end of the ground, which assisted the Lions' early flurry, and then contributed to the side's devastating six-goal third term in which it widened the gap on the scoreboard.
Brisbane was momentarily in second place on the ladder throughout the game, throwing a challenge Hawthorn's way to win back the home ground advantage come finals, but the Hawks just need a win over Richmond on Sunday to finish second, and also claim the McClelland Trophy and $1 million prize.
It was ferocious, but the Saints were equally physical, as heavy hits proved the storyline of the first half.
In the face of that pressure, however, the Lions didn't baulk, instead they established a neat handball game in spite of it.
Nick Dal Santo opted to prepare for the future throughout the match. Instead of locking down on direct opponents, and forcing a dour, difficult to watch spectacle, he chose to send youngsters into the contest. J'Noemi Anderson (11 disposals, four clearances) and Charlotte Simpson (12 disposals) played as pure midfielders for the match, going head-to-head with the Lions' star contingent.
Paige Trudgeon (five intercept possessions, one goal) offered a challenging one-on-one match-up for Lions star Dakota Davidson (11 disposals, one goal), while at the other end of the ground, Jesse Wardlaw (19 disposals, two goals) had Jennifer Dunne (six intercept possessions, 14 disposals) to contend with.
The leading goalkicker
After Geelong's Aishling Moloney kicked six goals in week nine to overtake Brisbane's Taylor Smith at the top of the leaderboard, pressure fell back on the Lion to reclaim that title she has held for much of the season. It didn't take long for Smith to fight back, with two first-quarter goals, equalling Moloney's 21 for the season. A mark at the absolute death seemed to provide hope that Smith would get a chance to take the outright lead after the siren, but it was disallowed by the umpires, resulting in a shared AFLW leading goalkicker award for the second season running.
The Trudgeon v Davidson subplot
Underrated Euro-Yroke recruit Paige Trudgeon was handed the role on Brisbane spearhead Dakota Davidson, and offered an entertaining subplot to the game. Davidson moved in her aggressive manner up forward, kicking an opening-quarter goal and looked ominous, but Trudgeon threw a few of her own punches back. A free kick on the wing, in which Davidson caught her high in a tackle, had some byplay, and eventually resulted in a 50m penalty for the Saint. From the forward arc, Trudgeon coolly – and quickly – went back to slot her very first AFLW goal.
A retiring pioneer
At the conclusion of the game, inaugural AFLW player Steph Chiocci was chaired from the ground, retiring from the game. Although she was unable to run out for a game this year, due to an ACL injury, her impact on the AFLW cannot be diminished. The inaugural captain of Collingwood, who led the club out in the very first AFLW match back in 2017, Chiocci played 61 games across both the Pies and Euro-Yroke, joining the latter ahead of the 2023 NAB AFLW season.
Up next
Euro-Yroke's season is done and dusted, with focus now shifting to the upcoming player movement period, while Brisbane will set its sights on next week's qualifying final, with the fixture to be announced later on Sunday.
EURO-YROKE 1.0 2.1 3.3 6.5 (41)
BRISBANE 4.5 4.7 10.8 10.8 (68)
GOALS
Euro-Yroke: Wardlaw 2, Trudgeon, Stuart, Richards, Exon
Brisbane: Smith 2, Conway 2, R.Svarc, C.Svarc, Long, Hartill, Davidson, Anderson
BEST
Euro-Yroke: Lambert, Guttridge, Trudgeon, Smith, Wardlaw
Brisbane: Dawes, O'Dwyer, Koenen, Conway, Anderson, C.Svarc
INJURIES
Euro-Yroke: Nil
Brisbane: Conway (right shoulder)
Reports: Nil
Crowd: TBC at RSEA Park
