LAST season can only be described as a frustrating one for GWS GIANTS. At times they showed glimpses of their capabilities, and were in contention for finals for much of the season, but problems with coaching style and tactics meant that they ultimately fell short of a return to finals. But with a new head coach and new gameplan implemented, things are looking brighter for the girls in orange heading into Season 7.

LAST SEASON:

Position: 9th
Win-loss: 4-6
Percentage: 74.1
Best & Fairest: Alyce Parker
Leading Goalkicker: Cora Staunton

OFF-SEASON:

IN: Madison Brazendale (Tasmania Devils), Tess Cattle (Ainslie), Fleur Davies (Southport), Meghan Gaffney (Tasmania Devils), Zarlie Goldsworthy (Murray Bushrangers), Zara Hamilton (Murray Bushrangers), Jodie Hicks (Macquarie University), Cambridge McCormick (Eastlake Demons), Isabel Huntington (Western Bulldogs)

OUT: Katie Loynes (retired), Erin McKinnon (St Kilda), Ally Morphett (Sydney), Lisa Steane (Sydney), Rebecca Privitelli (Sydney), Libby Graham (Richmond), Louise Stephenson (Hawthorn), Erin Lorenzini (retired)

TEAM LIST:

Nicola Barr, Rebecca Beeson, Madison Brazendale, Tess Cattle, Ally Dallaway, Chloe Dalton, Fleur Davies,
Jessica Doyle, Alicia Eva, Tarni Evans, Georgina Fowler, Meghan Gaffney, Georgia Garnett, Zarlie Goldsworthy, Jasmine Grierson, Zara Hamilton, Tanya Hetherington, Jodie Hicks, Annalyse Lister, Tait Mackrill, Cambridge McCormick, Brodee Mowbray, Alyce Parker, Emily Pease, Pepa Randall, Casidhe Simmons, Katherine Smith, Brid Stack, Cora Staunton, Haneen Zreika

Inactive: Jessica Allan, Emily Goodsir, Isabel Huntington, Isadora McLeay

FIXTURE:

Round 1: @ Western Bulldogs | Ikon Park
Round 2: vs. Brisbane | Manuka Oval
Round 3: @ Sydney | SCG
Round 4: vs. West Coast | GIANTS Stadium
Round 5: @ Adelaide | Unley Oval
Round 6: vs. Carlton | Henson Park
Round 7: @ Collingwood | Victoria Park
Round 8: vs. Hawthorn | Henson Park
Round 9: @ Richmond | Mildura Sporting Precinct
Round 10: vs. Gold Coast | Henson Park

BEST 21:

B: Brid Stack – Annalyse Lister
HB: Katherine Smith -Tanya Hetherington – Pepa Randall
C: Emily Pease – Ally Dallaway – Alicia Eva
HF: Nicola Barr – Cora Staunton – Zarlie Goldsworthy
F: Jessica Doyle – Georgia Garnett
R: Fleur Davies – Alyce Parker – Rebecca Beeson
INT: Haneen Zrieka – Tarni Evans – Jasmine Grierson – Tait Mackrill – Chloe Dalton*

EMG: Tarni Evans – Jodie Hicks – Meghan Gaffney

Remaining players: Madison Brazendale, Tess Cattle, Georgina Fowler, Zara Hamilton, Cambridge McCormick, Brodee Mowbray, Casidhe Simmons

Inactive: Jessica Allan (work commitments), Emily Goodsir (maternity leave), Isabel Huntington (knee), Isadora McLeay (knee) 

LEAGUE B&F CONTENDER: Alyce Parker

It is hard to go past one of the league’s brightest young talents to poll well come the end of the season. She has another consistently stellar season in Season 6, so there is absolutely no reason to suggest she will not have another great season in Season 7. One of the best contested ball winners in the business, Parker is a consistent disposal magnet and someone who can influence a game in multiple ways..

BIG YEAR FOR: Tarni Evans

If she is able to remain fit and injury free, season 7 could be a big season for Evans to really get her career going. She has the talent to make a real impact on the competition, but after a foot injury hampered her Season 6 campaign, she has not been able to make quite the impact yet. With GWS needing more scoring options too, she is the perfect person to come in and fill that role.

KEY TALKING POINTS:

Will a new game plan turn things around for the GIANTS?

As previously mentioned, new senior coach Cam Bernasconi has brought in a new gameplan, with hopefully a few more tricks up his sleeve than previous GIANTS coaches have had. It remains to be seen how much of an impact the new game plan will have on the GIANTS this season.

Will this game plan improve scoring?

Another issue GWS faced last season was its ability to score, but one huge facet of Bernasconi’s new plan is focused around generating more scoring opportunities. The plan is shown to have worked so far in GWS’ two practise matches, but whether it can stack up against harder opposition remains to be seen.

How will such a high list turnover affect their season?

The GIANTS brought in nine new faces this offseason, which is about a third of their entire list. Now a lot of turnover can bring synergy issues particularly early in the season, and especially since most of GWS’ additions are very new to AFLW whether they suffer the same fate remains to be seen.

How will their very young ruck department go?

Among GWS’ nine changes in the offseason was losing both rucks on their list Ally Morphett and Erin McKinnon. In their place comes 18 year-old Fleur Davies, and Cambridge McCormack who has come straight out of the state league in Canberra. Both are very talented, but have no AFLW experience. But how will they stack up against already established competition?

PREDICTION: 9th-12th