ADELAIDE and Geelong make up a third of the Round 5 Draft Central Team of the Week for AFL Women’s, with several individual performances helping them to crucial wins in Conference A and B respectively. Fellow winners, Fremantle and Carlton have three representatives each after impressive displays over conference rivals, while Melbourne surprisingly only have two players featuring, despite owning the round’s biggest winning margin. The Dees join a pack of three others with two nominees, while Brisbane and GWS each have a sole player included after comprehensive losses.

Emma Kearney cracked the 30-disposal mark with an outstanding 31 possession, 10 clearance and eight mark game to headline the individual feats this week. Incredibly, her and Jess Duffin’s standout games came in a losing effort. That came at the hands of the Crows, with Erin Phillips (23 disposals, seven inside 50s, six clearances, two goals) again leading the way for a surging Adelaide side as Ebony Marinoff and Chelsea Randall followed suit in terms of ball-winning, and Danielle Ponter proved dangerous up forward to make it four Crows in the starting 18.

Geelong was another big winner, with the standout being Richelle Cranston’s 22 disposal game in the engine room, while Kate Darby impressed inside 50 for three goals. 2018 draftee, Olivia Purcell was unlucky to be relegated to the bench in this side, with her 20 disposal and 10 tackle performance another highlight. Jessy Keeffe was Brisbane’s sole representative from that game, shining in the ruck despite the Lions managing the lowest ever team score in AFLW history.
Carlton skipper, Brianna Davey had arguably the most influential game of the round, willing her side on to victory in an incredible all-round display that yielded a perfect 10 from the coaches. Fellow Blues midfielder, Madison Prespakis kept up her terrific form to also be named, with the much-improved Pies pair of Jaimee Lambert and Ash Brazill also named. Melbourne’s Maddison Gay was another to crack a perfect 10, with teammate Tegan Cunningham’s three goals crucial to their win, much like Kellie Gibson for Fremantle. The Dockers overcame the Dogs despite the best efforts of nominees, Katie Brennan and Monique Conti, with Dana Hooker and Kiara Bowers putting in monumental shifts.