IN a weekly piece throughout the AFL Women’s season, we name the players and teams who will be looking to have a big week in the upcoming round. From underperforming sides, to players looking to step up or continue their form, Big Week For highlights those who could be ones to watch over the weekend.

Nicola Stevens

For poor Nicola Stevens, last week would’ve been one of the toughest in her AFLW career, but what better way to bounce back than the opportunity to impress against your most recent former side, Carlton.

Coming off the miss that cost her side the game against Collingwood, the pressure of playing old friends and teammates for the first time since she left perhaps only adds to the toll, but also presents a great chance to regenerate some positivity with a strong showing. Expect some big things from the lively forward this week.

Melbourne & Western Bulldogs

These two make the list not for a negative reason, but because of the magnitude of their match this week, and are paired together as they prepare to face off.

The two sides play for the Hampson-Hardeman Cup, and with that brings a lot of history, rivalry and spite between them.

This season’s edition has a new venue though, with the teams taking to Casey Fields for the first time.

Sophie Van De Heuvel

It is a big week for Essendon’s Sophie Van De Heuvel, with her side not only making the huge trek all the way to Warrnambool to take on Geelong, but she has to face her old side for the first time.

Van De Heuvel is having a great season for her new team, with above career average stats, so she would love nothing more than to get one up over her old side.

Hawthorn & Port Adelaide

These two are clumped together simply because they are each others’ opponents this weekend, but both sides come into this game in a very different position than many would have predicted at the start of the season.

Hawthorn is coming off a two-match win streak, while not many would have expected Port to win last week, the scale of their loss may have surprised some.

Will the Hawks’ confidence of the past fortnight power them through to three on the trot, or will Port bounce back onto the winners list?

Nikki Gore

Much like Stevens and Van De Heuvel, Nikki Gore is also up against her old side this week as new side Fremantle travel to play old side Adelaide.

Fremantle has a mountain to climb to make something out of this season, but if the Dockers can somehow take out Adelaide that would be something that they can certainly use to start a late season surge.