With one round left of the home and away season and five clubs in contention for the flag, selecting strong sides is a must if any team hopes to secure a grand final spot. Ladder leaders the Western Bulldogs are in particularly good stead for their round seven match with the anticipated return of captain, Katie Brennan. After their loss to the Giants last week, the Dogs will be hoping that Brennan can lead them to the win they need in order to keep their grand final dream alive. Alongside Brennan, Aisling Utri will also take the field, while Kirsten McLeod and Emma Mackie have been omitted from the squad.

Taking on the Dogs, Melbourne will have a tough task ahead of them this weekend with the loss of All-Australian, Melissa Hickey who tore her ACL in last weeks clash. Meanwhile, experienced Cranbourne junior, Bianca Jakobsson has returned from injury and should add stability and class to the Melbourne outfit.

Friday night’s clash leaves both Brisbane and GWS with no room for error as they battle it out for a potential spot in the elusive grand final. In response to this, Brisbane have named an unchanged side, trusting previous efforts to get them over the line. Similarly, GWS have made few changes, except for one forced change following Aimee Schmidt’s injury last weekend. Renee Forth will take her place on the field.

Former Adelaide player, Kellie Gibson, will don the Fremantle jumper for the first time as the Dockers face Carlton on Saturday. Team mate, Ashley Sharp will also come in for Jade De Melo and Stacey Barr who have both been omitted. Their opposition, Carlton, have been no stranger to injury this season, however, just in time for round seven Lauren Brazzale and Lauren Arnell have been called into the side following injuries in round five. Carlton have also named South Bunbury junior, Katie-Jayne Grieve as part of the squad to take on the Dockers.

Adelaide will be experiencing some déjà vu when they are faced with the Pies this Sunday, as they fight for a spot in the grand final under similar conditions as last year. Adelaide have suggested two prospective ins, with Sally Riley and Georgia Bevan being named in their extended squad. Ruby Schleicher’s injury has forced the Pies to bring in Bree White in hope to claim an upset win in the final game of their season. 

Friday, March 16:

Greater Western Sydney v Brisbane at Blacktown International Sportspark, 7.05pm AEDT

GWS

B: T.Hetherington 9, E.Brush 10, P.Randall 21
HB: N.Barr 8, P.Monahan 28, A.Farrugia 18
C:                      C.Gum 26
HF: J.Dal Pos 7, P.McWilliams 3, J.Hicks 5
F: J.Barclay 34, C.Staunton 13, R.Beeson 6
Foll: E.McKinnon 23, A.Eva 2, B.Tully 16
I/C: E.Swanson 17, R.Tomkins 1, E.Bennetts 22, M.Collier 14, R.Forth 27

Emerg: L.Stephenson 12, A.Saundry 4

In: R.Forth
Out:A.Schmidt (Injured)

BRISBANE

B: E.Pittman 29, L.Kaslar 11, B.Koenen 3
HB: E.Zielke 8, K.Lutkins 13, K.McCarthy 9
C:                         N.Exon 15
HF: E.Bates 1, T.Randall 16, M.Hunt 6
F: J.Wuetschner 23, B.Gibson 25, K.Ashmore 10
Foll: S.Frederick-Traub 14, J.Stanton 17, A.Anderson 18
I/C: S.Webb 4, I.Ayre 2, S.Campbell 20, S.Conway 12, A.Clarke 21

Emerg: J.Zanchetta 7, J.Keeffe 27

No changes

Saturday, March 17:

Fremantle v Carlton at Fremantle Oval, 5.05pm AWST

FREMANTLE

B: A.Williams 9, T.Bresland 5, E.Gooch 8
HB: M.Caulfield 29, E.Antonio 12, D.Hooker 17
C:                    K.Donnellan 15
HF: L.Webb 16 , A.Atkins 37, K.Gibson 21
F: S.Cain 20, T.Haynes 6, G.O’Sullivan 22
Foll: A.Janz 30, L.Mascall 14, H.Miller 19
I/C: A.Sharp 1, C.Davidson 33, L.Filocamo 4, A.Lavell 7, T.McAuliffe 25

Emerg: B.Smith 18 G.Houghton 27

In: K.Gibson, A.Sharp
Out: J.de Melo, S.Barr

CARLTON

B: G.Pound 6, D.Hardiman 31, S.Li 35
HB: K.Loynes 2 , K.Gillespie-Jones 5, N.Stevens 21
C:                    K.Grieve 28
HF: D.Vescio 3, T.Harris 22, G.Gee 19
F: M.Gay 8, B.Moody 16, S.Hosking 10
Foll: A.Downie 30, S.Audley 26, L.Brazzale 12
I/C: L.Arnell 13, T.Lucas-Rodd 18, K.Harrington 9, B.Kennedy 23, J.Hosking 11

Emerg: R.Hicks 24, S.Last 7

In: K.Grieve, L.Brazzale, L.Arnell
Out: L.Attard, T.Cochrane, M.Keryk

Saturday, March 17:

Western Bulldogs v Melbourne at VU Whitten Oval, 7.10pm AEDT

WESTERN BULLDOGS

B: L.Birch 18, B.Toogood 28, N.Callinan 10
HB: H.Scott 22, A.O’Connor 4, A.Gogos 36
C:                    E.Blackburn 2
HF: B.Lochland 1, K.Brennan 3, M.Conti 8
F: J.Bruton 35, L.Spark 11, A.Utri 23
Foll: T.Ernst 19, E.Kearney 5, K.Lamb 27
I/C: N.Ferres 16, B.Hunt 21, H.Wildes 17, K.Rennie 24, D.Berry 7

Emerg: E.Mackie 25, J.Anderson 26

In: K.Brennan, A.Utri
Out: K.McLeod (Injured), E.Mackie

MELBOURNE

B: A.Teague 40, M.Downie 2, A.Guest 17
HB: C.Whitfort 20, H.Cordner 21, B.Jakobsson 7
C:                         E.O’Dea 5
HF: S.Scott 12, K.Paxman 4, T.Cunningham 1
F: E.Zanker 29, R.Cranston 30, K.Hore 10
Foll: L.Pearce 15, D.Pearce 6, K.Smith 13
I/C: S.Lampard 8, J.Grierson 19, L.Mithen 14, B.Patterson 24, A.Newman 16

Emerg: C.Phillips 35, E.Humphries 3

In: B.Jakobsson, S.Lampard
Out: M.Hickey (knee), C.Phillips

Sunday, March 18:

Collingwood v Adelaide at Olympic Park Oval, 2.35pm AEDT

COLLINGWOOD

B: E.Grant 5, J.Duffin 27, A.Brazill 10
HB: C.Molloy 2, C.McIntosh 20, T.Morgan 26
C:                    A.Barden 38
HF: S.D’Arcy 4, J.Garner 43, C.Bernardi 6
F: M.Kuys 9, M.Hope 23, C.Edwards 1
Foll: E.King 60, J.Lambert 13, B.Bonnici 8
I/C: B.White 33, G.Parker 19, L.Tesoriero 7, K.Stratton 41, M.Hutchins 25, H.Whitford 28, S.Darga 46

In: B.White, H.Whitford, S.Dargan
Out: R.Schleicher (Injured)

ADELAIDE

B: S.Thompson 14, S.Allan 39, D.Cox 31
HB: C.Cramey 22, J.Hewett 20, A.Foley 3
C:                     E.Phillips 13
HF: D.Varnhagen 9, A.Hatchard 33, J.Sedunary 17
F: R.Wallace 15, S.Perkins 28 J.McCormick 5
Foll: R.Metcalfe 11, C.Randall 26, E.Marinoff 10
I/C: M.Rajcic 32, R.Lugg 45, E.Jones 2, J.Mules 23, S.Armitstead 16, S.Riley 8, G.Bevan 4

In: S.Riley, G.Bevan
Out: Nil.