THREE matches remain in Round 7 of the AFL Women’s, with a couple based in Victoria and another out west with the Carlton-Collingwood battle the pick of the bunch. Being Indigenous Round, Port Adelaide has changed its name to Yartapuulti, while Melbourne is known as Naarm.

1:05pm
Arden St

Recent Form

North Melbourne is chugging along nicely at the moment, with only one loss to its name so far this season.

Yartapuulti on the other hand will be desperate to cause the upset today, as with only one win to their name so far this season the Power would love nothing more than to bank their second set of four points today.

History

These two did meet last season in Yartapuulti’s inaugural campaign, but it was a victory to the visiting Kangaroos to the tune of 25 points.

Key Stat Areas

Yartapuulti is really going to have to make the most of any chance they get with ball in hand today. From everything from total disposals, to inside 50s, to even hit outs and clearances, North Melbourne has been doing significantly better in many categories than the Power this season.

Key Match Up/s

Jasmine Ferguson vs Ashleigh Saint

Saint is the key target up forward for the Power, but does also tend to push up the ground at times. Ferguson or whoever ends up on Saint needs to be prepared to do a fair bit of running this afternoon.

Kate Shierlaw vs Hannah Dunn

Up the other end, and Shierlaw is just as important for North Melbourne as Saint is for Yartapuulti. She is not easy to mark up on, so Dunn or whoever else ends up on her will have to play in front the whole time.

Jasmine Garner vs Erin Phillips

Two of the competition’s best for a long time for a reason, this is sure to provide one hell of a battle of talent. They are also two of the toughest, most competitive members of their respective sides for a reason, and will stop at nothing in the pursuit of success for their teams.

3:05pm
Ikon Park

Recent Form

Both of these teams sit in similar situations, and would love nothing more than to bank the win against the old enemy today. They are also both coming off big wins that were for different reasons, so will take a renewed sense of confidence into today’s clash.

History

As two inaugural teams of the competition and old rivals, there is certainly plenty of history between these sides. These two have played every year since Season 1 of AFL Womens, with the Blues having won the first three encounters and Collingwood having won the four most recent clashes.

Key Stat Areas

Collingwood tend to kick the ball more than Carlton does, while for Carlton they handball the ball way more than Collingwood do. Interestingly, Collingwood has been doing better when it comes to the number of inside 50s, but Carlton’s inside 50 efficiency has been better.

Key Match Up/s

Gen Lawson-Tavan vs Ash Brazill

Brazill is dangerous both up in the midfield and in the forward line, so Lawson-Tavan needs to harness her running capacity to make sure Brazill is always marked.

Darcy Vescio vs Lauren Butler

Vescio is one of the most dangerous forward targets for Carlton, who can also push up into the midfielder. Butler, or whoever else ends up on them, cannot afford to lose track of Vescio even for a second, because they will have snuck out the back of a contest and be on the way to getting a shot off.

Jess Good vs Sabrina Frederick

They say it all starts in the middle. and this is set to be an intriguing battle. Two of the rucks having strong arguably break out seasons that also have very different techniques in a ruck contest, who will prevail?

5:05pm
Mineral Resources Park  

Recent Form

Narrm will be keen to bounce back from their first loss of the season last weekend, while West Coast will be very disappointed with how it went against the Giants last week and will be very keen to bank its second win of 2023.

History

These two have met twice in their history, with Naarm emerging victorious on both occasions.

Key Stat Areas

West Coast is really going to have to make the most of any chance they get with ball in hand today. From everything from total disposals, to inside 50s, to even hitouts and clearances, Naarm has been doing significantly better in many categories than the Eagles this season.

Key Match Up/s

Lauren Wakfer vs Georgia Campbell

This is set to be an intriguing battle. Two young rucks thrust into the prime number one ruck spot who are both trying to prove they should keep that spot.

Jessica Sedunary vs Kate Hore

Naarm has plenty of dangerous forward targets, and one of those is Hore. After a quiet weekend last weekend by Hore’s standards, she will be even more keen for a huge performance, so Sedunary or whoever ends up on her will have a busy afternoon.

Ella Roberts vs Sinead Goldrick

Up the other end, and as she proved last week Roberts is perhaps the most dangerous forward target for the Eagles. She is a strong leader for the ball with a bit of pace to her, but luckily for the Dees they have Goldrick, who can easily match her in the speed department.