Melbourne took the lead over Brisbane early in the third quarter of the AFLW grand final and never gave it back, holding on to win their first AFLW premiership by four points.
10 AFLW players who have gone to the next level in 2021
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The AFLW competition has entered a very interesting point in its existence.
A large portion of the inaugural players are in career-best form, with five years of elite development under their already experienced belts.
Couple that with the next wave, those drafted in the last few seasons who have had years of junior football and training, and you get a sweet spot with both generations firing.
Here are 10 examples of players who have improved greatly so far this season.
1. Kate Shierlaw (St Kilda)
Ranked second in the competition for contested marks and fourth for total marks taken this year, Kate Shierlaw is shining playing as the Saints’ secondary key forward next to Caitlin Greiser.
AFLW Round 3 wrap-up A Set the default text size A Set large text size
Replay A Set the default text size A Set large text size
Melbourne vs North Melbourne
I’ve watched most AFLW matches since the competition started, and the Melbourne versus North Melbourne clash was almost certainly the best display of skill the competition had yet put on.
A lot of the credit here has to go to the coaches.
Traditionally in the AFLW (or the AFL, for that matter) when a coach finds him or herself on the receiving end of a shellacking, as North did in the second quarter, they put extra players behind the play, curl up into a defensive ball and try to make the game as ugly as possible.