THREE teams remain in the hunt for the SANFL Women’s flag after Norwood remained alive with a win over reigning premiers Central District, while South Adelaide booked its place in the SANFLW Grand Final and sent Glenelg to face the Redlegs in the preliminary final. We took note of those State Academy members in action with all notes the opinion of the individual author.

South Adelaide:

#17 Shae Archbold (Forward)

Stats: 2 disposals, 1 mark

Unfortunately for Archbold, a whack to the face resulted in a blood nose after her first touch midway through the first term and after doing some run-throughs at half-time to test the flow, returned later in the match in the fourth term to take a mark and on the wing and kick down the ground. She did give away a free kick in frustration for pushing over Marie Martino. A tough day for the forward with limited minutes on-field.

#19 Taya Maxwell (Forward/Ruck)

Stats: 6 disposals, 2 marks (2 contested), 4 hitouts, 4 clearances, 1 inside 50, 1 rebound 50

Maxwell was another tall who had a quieter day but took a couple of crucial marks at half-back to buy her side some time to get forward in the second and third terms. On multiple occasions, the Under 16s tall would look to take it out of the ruck and clear it away to space, and used her strong frame to full advantage.

#20 Layla Vizgaudis (Wing/Forward)

Stats: 9 disposals, 1 mark, 2 tackles, 2 clearances

Buzzed around the ground and worked hard, and while she did not win as much as she has over the past month, Vizgaudis still used the ball well. She looked to kick long down the line and did take a mark inside 50 and was able to deliver well to Emily Brockhurst on the lead as the pair often combined. Her quick hands were another feature of her game.

#23 Esther Schirmer (Defender)

Stats: 12 disposals, 3 marks (1 contested), 4 tackles, 2 inside 50s

Another reliable game from the consistent defender who played her role in defence and competed well all day. She mopped up in the back 50, provided offensive run and was as competitive as anyone both in the air and at ground level. Her defensive pressure was impressive, and there was very little to fault from her disposal, so an all-round game.

#25 Emma Charlton (Forward)

Stats: 11 disposals, 4 tackles, 2 inside 50s, 1 behind

Was well contained by Fielder early in the game but worked into it in the second half, having a couple of chances that either just missed or passed off. She caught the eye with a nice run along the wing late in the match, though a couple of minutes later came off with the blood rule. Her defensive pressure in the forward half was very good.

#56 Lily Baxter (Wing/Forward)

Stats: 10 disposals, 5 tackles, 3 clearances, 1 inside 50

It was a mixed bag for Baxter who had a couple of ‘almost’ moments that included just dropping a mark she would normally taker midway through the second term and going a little too high on an opponent five minutes prior. However her strong tackle on Jess Bates won her the ball in the early stages of the match, and she intercepted well in the same quarter, taking the game on and flicking off quick handballs to keep it moving in transition. Got in and around stoppages too and cleared the ball to space on a number of occasions.

Glenelg:

#6 Violet Patterson (Midfielder)

Stats: 20 disposals, 3 marks, 9 tackles, 3 clearances, 2 inside 50s, 2 rebound 50s

Patterson has developed into a fully fledged inside midfielder with terrific pressure around the ball-carrier, and still ahving the capacity to work to the outside and impact there. Her kicking efficiency has improved throughout this season, and though at times she seemed to be waging a war with the umpires after a couple of calls went against her, kept cracking in and finished as one of Glenelg’s best. Her ball use was strong and she never takes a backwards step.

#9 Eloise Mackereth (Forward)

Stats: 4 disposals, 2 marks, 1 tackle, 1 goal, 1 behind

Did what she could from limited opportunities, kicking the only goal of the day for the Bays. That came after a well-earned mark which came with front-on contact, nailing the set shot with great composure on the half-time siren. She almost soccered home a second goal on the three quarter time siren as well, but was touched on the line by Carly Milsom. Her second set shot midway through the last term missed to the right, and while she did not get many other chances, still worked hard to present and compete in the air.

#19 Matilda Wilmore (Forward/Wing)

Stats: 9 disposals, 1 mark, 1 tackle, 1 clearance, 1 inside 50, 1 rebound 50

Found the extra pressure of finals a little tougher, but just always has a crack. She put her body on the line and did get her hands to the ball a fair bit, but often was stripped of it due to the Panther pressure around her. Spent time on Baxter running up and down the ground, and each time she went to use it was either tackled or bumped off it. Still, her contest-to-contest work and work rate was very strong.

#59 Georgie Fielder (Defender)

Stats: 13 disposals, 3 marks, 5 tackles, 1 clearance, 1 inside 50, 2 rebound 50s

One of the best Bays in the match, Fielder started the game in defence on the dangerous Charlton, and was terrific in the opening term, racking up seven disposals as she looked calm and composed with ball-in-hand. Her hands were clean, she has a nice burst of speed and was able to mop up time and time again. Though her first term was the biggest, she played well throughout the game, and saved the day on a number of occasions, using the ball well by hand or foot.

Central District:

#9 Charlotte Riggs (Defender/Forward)

Stats: 9 disposals, 5 marks (2 contested), 3 tackles, 1 clearance, 2 rebound 50s, 1 behind

Once again showing she could be deployed in multiple roles, Riggs was playing an aggressive half-back role to start, and though she largely did that, also managed to get forward to have a flying shot on goal midway through the second term that missed to the right. Her pressure was good, and her aerial presence always a threat to the opposition, clunking some huge grabs and finishing off her SANFLW season with a handy performance.

#12 Sophie Eaton (Wing)

Stats: 9 disposals, 4 marks, 4 tackle, 3 inside 50

Eaton had a big first term running hard along the wing, heading into quarter time with five touches. A highlight was in the 18th minute of the opening quarer she showed good pressure inside the defensive 50, then pushed up to mark on the defensive side of the wing. She kicked down the ground and run past for a handball receive, kicking inside 50 well. Though quieter after quarter time, she still worked up and down the ground, and while at times she could improve the contested side of her game, showed her class with ball-in-hand.

#21 Georgia McKee (Forward)

Stats: 5 disposals, 2 tackles, 1 inside 50, 1 behind

The AFLW Academy member did not have a lot of space to work with inside 50, though laid a strong tackle on Kiana Lee in the opening two minutes of the first term. She had a great snap on goal later in the second quarter that was unlucky to miss, while often finding herself against two defenders. She tried to soccer the ball off the deck late in the third but was under pressure, and she appleid a similar pressure deep inside 50 through the second half but once again found herself against multiple opponents.

#27 Jasmine Evans (Forward)

Stats: 8 disposals, 1 mark, 1 tackle, 1 clearance, 2 inside 50s

Evans started the game in the opening minute with a chance to go for goal but unselfishly passed off to the top of the goalsquare which was unfortunately cleared. She showed a quick pair of hands, nice skills and lovely sidestep as has been her trademark over the last two years throughout the course of the game. At times she was half-smothered or tackled as she went to dispose of it, but when having any sort of time, was able to nail elite passes.

#31 Tara Lord (Defender)

Stats: 2 disposals, 2 tackles, 1 rebound 50

Back in her defensive role, Lord did not see a lot of it, but had a few chances going up for a number of marks or competing at ground level. She only had the two disposals, both of which came in the second half. She rolled up to the midfield and put some body pressure on an opponent at different points, but ultimately it was a game where she didn’t get her hands to it.

#54 Mikaylah Antony (Defender)

Stats: 14 disposals, 4 marks, 1 tackle, 2 clearances, 1 inside 50, 3 rebound 50s

One of the biggest improvers this season, Antony’s emergence in the Bulldogs side has been important. She is a lovely user of the ball and not afraid to make the tough kicks. At times she could have a touch more urgency and no doubt would like to have that potential rushed behind – that led to Lana Schwerdt kicking a goal on the line – back. But moments like that are great learning curves, and being a bottom-ager, Antony has plenty of room to grow in her game. Her skills and football understanding are evident, and it is just about rounding out her game.

Norwood:

#2 Coby Morgan (Wing)

Stats: 15 disposals, 1 tackle, 5 clearances, 3 inside 50s, 1 rebound 50, 1 goal

The explosive winger had one of her better games this season, coming off a wing and making good decisions with ball-in-hand. Though her efficiency has always been a question mark, Morgan delivered a terrific kick inside 50 to Adrienne Davies midway through the first term and had another clever kick with the outside of the boot late in that term. Her best play came in the third term where after copping a high tackle at the 15-minute mark, she took off to keep the ball moving and kicked a great goal on the run from 20m.

#39 Charli Hazelhurst (Defender)

Stats: 14 disposals, 1 mark, 1 tackle, 1 inside 50, 2 rebound 50s

Had her hands full early on Katelyn Rosenzweig and rotated with Nicola Burns on the dangerous forward. While Rosenzweig did get off the chain particularly in the third term, Hazelhurst did well in the on-one-ones on a couple of occasions when able to keep her opponent from the front position. She mopped up well in defence and found her fair share of the ball, taking her sole mark in the last minute of the final term which was a strong intercept grab.

#61 Kate Alexander (Ruck)

Stats: 4 disposals, 2 tackles, 21 hitouts, 1 clearance, 1 inside 50

The young ruck was influential in the stoppages, getting a fair few taps down to her midfielders and getting first hands to it. She might not have had a huge influence around the ground but had a couple of touches in the final term, including a massive holding the ball free kick from a great tackle in the dying minutes.