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AUSTRALIA

AFLW continues to make history

  • 13 February 2020

 

Footy returned to our radios, televisions and suburban grounds right around the country last weekend as the fourth season of the AFLW kicked off. It was a weekend of history making moments, but it was also a weekend that highlighted some of the very real challenges facing the competition.

Four new teams — Gold Coast, Richmond, St Kilda and West Coast — have joined the competition in 2020 bringing the total number of teams to 14. However, the AFL has resisted calls, most notably from the players, for a 13-week home and away season, instead persisting with their controversial conference setup and an 8-week home and away season followed by a three-week final series. Of course, this decision has ramifications.

Last Friday night, newcomers Richmond were beaten by last season’s grand finalists Carlton in front of 15,337 people at Princes Park. For many Richmond fans the result was far outweighed by the historic nature of the night. Tigers coach Tom Hunter said it best post-match when he described the night as being ‘just a little bit bigger than footy’.

‘For the Richmond Football Club to have a women’s side run out for the first time, in their inaugural season, in front of so many yellow and black supporters tonight… it meant a lot to a lot of people,’ Hunter said. And he was right. The same can be true of Gold Coast, St Kilda and West Coast, whose fans expressed similar sentiments across the weekend as their teams were beaten in their debuts. These were historic games, marked by many historic moments including the first goalkickers for the teams.

It’s perhaps unsurprising that the newcomers were unable to record a win first up. Many of the teams had played only a handful of games together. West Coast coach Luke Dwyer made the point post-match that the Eagles had played only three games together.

Familiarity may breed contempt but it also builds better players and more cohesive teams. It was a point that Olympian Kim Brennan spoke about on the ABC’s Offsiders last Sunday morning. Brennan supported the AFL’s expansions, saying that she believed sports ‘have to be aggressive in expansion to increase opportunities and stimulate that supply and demand issue.’

 

'It feels almost cliché to keep placing the word ‘history’ alongside the AFLW. But, it’s also right.'  

However, Brennan also raised questions about the AFL’s decision to only play eight rounds. ‘My
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