AS PART of a new series leading into the 2023 Western Australian Football League (WAFL) Women’s season, we count down 23 players to watch who are under 23. We are only looking at those players who were born January 1, 2000 or later, have played a WAFL Women’s senior match and have never been on an AFL Women’s list. Today our countdown continues at number #22 with Subiaco forward Hayley Corlett.
#22 Hayley Corlett (Subiaco)
DOB: 05/11/2002
Height: 170cm
Position: Medium Forward
Local club: Chapman Valley
There are plenty of players who might not have the highest production rate or numbers on a stats sheet, but still do far more damage than often given credit for in a match. One of those is Subiaco forward Hayley Corlett, who averaged the 9.7 disposals, 1.8 marks, 2.8 tackles and 1.8 inside 50s per game in 2023. The WAFL Women’s half-forward also kicked the six goals from her 14 matches, but inaccuracy her hurt, with 12 behinds showing just how much more impact individually she could have had in the 2022 season.
Corlett is a player who moves well in the front half and is incredibly creative, not only kicking goals herself, but also setting them up for her teammates. Though Subiaco failed to make finals last season, Corlett still proved herself to be a reliable source of scoreboard pressure, earning a place in the WAFL Women’s All-Stars side. There, she took on the best Under 18s from across the state, and as a 20-year-old, she is still young enough to be seen as a developing talent.
Standing at 170cm, Corlett traditionally plays as a high half-forward, and though she can get inside and hit the scoreboard, she does cover ground working up to a wing if the ball is turned over. The reason she makes it into our countdown is for the fact she is one who has untapped potential that could help her improve exponentially. Only making her debut for Subiaco in 2021, she effectively came in as an overager and is making up for lost time at state league level.
If she can continue developing at the rate she showed in 2022 then Corlett is a player who could be something special, and could even crack into the midfield in the absence of some key players, such as Jayme Harken, missing from that on-ball group.
