A NATURAL leader by example, Geelong Falcons skipper Georgia Tyrrell had another huge performance in the Coates Talent League Girls competition over the weekend. After winning the Player of the Week back in Round 6, Tyrrell had to wait a while before playing again and that came against the Calder Cannons in Leopold on Saturday.

In the Round 9 outing, Tyrrell amassed 38 disposals, eight clearance, four inside 50s and three rebound 50s, while laying seven tackles. Incredibly, it was her equal second-lowest tackle count of the year, with four of her seven games coming with 13 or more tackles. After averaging 23 disposals from her first five weeks, the Falcons midfielder has put up efforts of 41 and now 38 in her past two games.

While it was in a big win for the Falcons, Tyrrell lead from the front and has a well-rounded game at the stoppages, while also getting a taste for life off half-back in the fourth term.

Her performance was the subject of our Coates Talent League Girls Player Focus this week.

GEORGIA TYRRELL PROFILE

DOB: 04/08/2007
Height: 168cm
Position: Midfielder/Defender
Strengths: Clean hands, strength, vision, work rate, leadership, defensive pressure
Improvements: Explosiveness, aerial ability, scoreboard impact

PLAYER FOCUS:

2025 Coates Talent League Girls – Round 9:
Geelong Falcons 10.17 (77) def. Calder Cannons 2.2 (14)

#9 Georgia Tyrrell (Geelong Falcons)
Stats: 38 disposals, 3 marks, 7 tackles, 8 clearances, 4 inside 50s, 3 rebound 50s

FIRST QUARTER

Tyrrell started on-ball as she so often does with her partner in crime Stella Huxtable down forward, and often her other midfield pairing Alana Mulvahil on a wing. Instead, she and Ava Bilyk – one of the top prospects for next year – lead the midfield charge.

Unsurprisingly her first impact on the game was from a defensive standpoint laying a couple of tackles and harassing the Cannons’ midfielders. She produced a long kick from the outside of the boot at a forward stoppage to a contest in the pocket, then shortly after dished off by hands while standing up in a tackle.

The latter would be a constant theme of Tyrrell’s game because the one knock of the talented midfielder is that lack of explosiveness compared to other inside midfielders, though her contest to contest ability and general work rate is as good as anyone else’s going around. Tyrrell gives as good as she gets when it comes to tackling, and even if not rewarded for tackles – such as being the second tackler or the ball spilling out – she produces high pressure acts which is endearing to her teammates.

Tyrrell is a neat user of the ball and she showed it coming out of a number of stoppages with the skipper having the ability to lower the eyes and drill a ball inside 50. She can evade opponents through smarts, often sidestepping or feigning one way then dishing off another. Her last disposal of the first term came via a lovely kick inside 50 to hit up Meyah Fursland on the lead.

By quarter time, the Geelong Falcons skipper had racked up 15 touches and looked on track for a competition record.

SECOND QUARTER

Tyrrell started her second term with a strong tackle on the wing and then won a touch at a stoppage, handballing clear when tackled. Going in for a desperate ground ball win, she dove on the ball but was mobbed by opponents and unfortunately called for holding the ball in the early stages of the quarter.

As the game went on it was clear Tyrrell was building to a stat-stuffing performance and even as the half-time siren sounded, the ball-winning midfielder was up to 26 touches. Importantly, those disposals were not just quick non-impactful handballs, with Tyrrell also able to win the ball at the coalface, extract and even deliver inside 50.

Her vision is one of her strengths, and Tyrrell was not afraid to deliver laterally to a wing in space for teammates to run onto. She also reads the game really well and on a number of occasions would drop behind the ball and intercept, taking a good mark midway through the second quarter and won a number of touches at half-back when Calder was progressing hard with momentum.

Though not quick, Tyrrell showed she can still move through traffic, stepping inside two Calder opponents when under pressure to get into space and then delivered inside 50 to a teammate;’s advantage. She went into defence mode once more at the end of the quarter, laying two bone-crunching tackles at half-forward to ensure the ball remained in Geelong’s front half.

THIRD QUARTER

Coming out of the half, Tyrrell started at the centre bounce and pushed forward to win it just outside 50 and hit up another pass lace-out to Jayde Morrissy on the lead. She would win a few more touches over the opening few minutes, mostly between the arc. That included a gather on the wing – where her kick was smothered – and one where she was immediately tackled.

However her main highlight came in the third minute when she won another clearance on the wing, showing clean hands going forward. Though a quieter quarter by her standards, Tyrrell still managed to be involved by popping up with contested possessions when under pressure and using her smarts to advantage.

Towards the end of the quarter, the Geelong prospect finished off with another couple of impactful touches, including yet a further kick inside 50 that nailed Greea McKeegan on the lead. Tyrrell knows how to use the ball and does lower the eyes going inside 50, which makes her able to hit those leading players lace-out or at the very least, to their advantage.

Tyrrell added seven more disposals to her day’s tally to make it 33 to the last break.

FOURTH QUARTER

Though she clearly would have surpassed 40 had the skipper remained in midfield, instead Tyrrell was sent to half-back to show that versatility. In the past she has spent time there as part of a rotation, though has become a heavy feature of the Falcons midfield. She won her first touch of the term in the opening two minutes, and pushed up to the wing to win another handball as well.

Tyrrell is a really strong groundlevel player, though aerially she is not as comfortable, and that was shown in a one-on-one against Charli Calleia who has four centimetres on the Geelong captain, but is also just more used to the aerial game. Though Calleia did outmark Tyrrell, no damage was done on the scoreboard.

What Tyrrell adds to the back half of the ground is natural composure with ball in hand and she generally makes good decisions. Able to execute by foot and use her vision to switch when required, there was an instant where a number of her teammates had overused the ball and Calder looked like scoring off the turnover. Instead, Tyrrell charged through, gathered the ball and just bombed it long to a one-on-one contest, clearing the immediate danger.

Tyrrell would finish with another five disposals for the fourth term, falling just short of the 40 touches for a second consecutive match. Still, she racked up a massive 38 – including 26 in the first half – but it was her impact around the ground both at the stoppages and in transition that made her the best on ground in the Falcons’ win.

FINAL THOUGHTS…

Tyrrell has arguably produced the best back-to-back games from an inside midfield perspective of the season, and is primed ahead of a campaign with Vic Country. She has a lot of draftable qualities in her game, and while there are those areas that can be improved and are focused on at times – such as speed – what she offers is natural footballing ability.

Tyrrell will likely be part of Country’s midfield rotation, but like any representative side, needs a secondary role. That will come in the form of half-back where the Falcons talent can use her vision and clean skills to pinpoint passes out of the back half at the national championships. Defensively she is elite, and if she adds more of a scoreboard presence in the future, then she will be even more well-rounded.