AFL Women’s returned over the weekend, and Round 1 really had it all. Statement wins, narrow wins, historic wins, there really was a full smorgasbord.

If you missed any of the action, do not panic. Scroll through to the game you missed and check out the key things to note from each game.

Melbourne (10.13.73) defeated Collingwood (4.7.31)

• Collingwood had the stronger first half and was looking on track to cause a huge upset, but Melbourne flicked the switch at half time to run away with the game.
• Melbourne’s turnaround can be attributed in large part to Shelley Heath, whose tagging role on Brianna Davey helped quell the influence of the Collingwood skipper, who had been dominant in the first half.

Carlton (5.4.34) defeated Gold Coast (4.8.32)

• Carlton survived a Gold Coast final quarter comeback to get its season off to a winning start.
• With many of the other stat areas fairly even between the sides, it was goal kicking that ultimately proved costly for the Suns.

Adelaide (8.10.58) defeated Port Adelaide (4.4.28)

• Adelaide kept its undefeated Showdown record intact with a win over a much improved Port side, who ran out of legs in the second half.
• Niamh Kelly was allowed to run loose and really made an impact for the Crows, and Port failed to recognise her influence and move to stop it.

Geelong (10.5.65) defeated Western Bulldogs (2.5.17)

• Geelong put together a comprehensive performance to comfortably defeat the Western Bulldogs.
• Georgie Prespakis and Amy McDonald dominated for Geelong and ensured the Bulldogs’ midfield had no influence on the game.

Hawthorn (4.6.30) lost to Essendon (7.7.49)

• Essendon made it two from two against the Hawks with a solid 19 point win over Hawthorn.
• Hawthorn’s inside 50 efficiency was impressively high, particularly in the first half, but ultimately finished with half as many inside 50s as the Bombers did.

North Melbourne (8.8.56) defeated St Kilda (2.4.16)

• North Melbourne made a statement in their opening match, comfortably defeating the Saints.
• The likes of Jasmine Garner and Ash Riddell were allowed to run rampant early, and the likes of Kate Shierlaw and the rest of the North Melbourne forward line really stretched the St Kilda defence who was lacking the height to counter them.

Sydney (7.9.51) defeated GWS (7.4.46)

• Sydney fought back from a poor first half to record a historic first ever win.
• Chloe Molloy was kept quiet in the first half, but once she broke the tag in the second half she had a huge influence on the game and helped her side snatch the win.

Brisbane (5.4.34) lost to Richmond (6.4.40)

• Brisbane led early, but Richmond fought back to take the win.
• Brisbane’s inside 50 efficiency was poor of a side of their calibre (39% versus Richmond’s 50%) which proved very costly.

Fremantle (4.3.27) defeated West Coast (2.7.19)

• Fremantle kept its crosstown rivals goalless in the first half on the way to keeping their undefeated Derby record intact.
• Despite being on the losing side, Ella Roberts won the RAC Medal for Best on Ground with an impressive 24 disposal, five clearances, four tackles game.