ELEVEN of last year’s Rookie Me Central SANFL Women’s Team of the Year have earned back-to-back honours, though most are in different positions. In addition to the double-digit returning players, six representatives of last year’s SANFLW Second Team of the Year stepped up to our first team for 2025. The selections were based on our Team of the Year nominations, with six or more nominations guaranteeing a spot in the side.

>> FULL SQUAD: 2025 Rookie Me Central SANFLW Team of the Year

Going out on a high, the retiring Jessica Bates made it four captaincies – let alone just Team of the Year honours – after recording a remarkable 13 out of 14 Team of the Week nominations. The Glenelg star averaged 30.5 disposals, 4.1 marks. 7.7 tackles, 7.1 clearances, 3.1 inside 50s and 2.4 rebound 50s for the season and had nine games of 30-plus disposals in a struggling side.

Her vice-captain for 2025 is Sturt’s Isobel Kuiper who was nominated in 12 out of 14 rounds, lining up beside Bates on-ball. She had one more nomination that ruck Soriah Moon, with the three stars set to be among the top SANFLW League Best and Fairest contenders on Monday night. The other midfielder was a player who could well be in the mix, though getting drafted to Adelaide has arguably made it more difficult in Eagles’ Christina Leuzzi. The much improved now AFLW talent rounds out a strong on-ball group.

The other player to receive double-figure nominations was North Adelaide’s Jamie Parish who had a wonderfully consistent season for the Roosters. She was named in 10 Team of the Weeks, and slotted into centre half back. Beside her is another player who got the call-up to AFLW in her North teammate, Laela Ebert. She is joined by a couple of other teenagers in Woodville-West Torrens utility Imogen Trengove and Glenelg rebounder Tessa Davis.

West Adelaide skipper Madi Russell is next to her namesake in Central District’s Madison Lane in defence. Up the other end of the ground, the two leading goalkickers slot into key posts with Bulldogs’ Katelyn Rosenzweig and Eagles’ Klaudia O’Neill making the team. Both Russell and O’Neill were in the Second Team 12 months ago. The other Central District player in the side is first-year Dog Tesharna Maher who had a great year up at The Ponderosa.

In the other pocket is one of the feel-good stories of 2025, being South Adelaide’s Shae Archbold. In her first full season back from an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury which ruled out her bottom-age year, Archbold was a mirror of consistency in 2025. Both she and her Panthers teammate Emma Charlton made the starting side and were key parts of the continued success at Noarlunga. Charlton’s fellow bottom-age teammate Taya Maxwell and experienced midfielder Caitlin Couch also made the team of the bench.

Versatile duo Jade Halfpenny and Monique Bessen were named on the wings despite largely being midfielder/forwards. Bessen at times rotated there, but largely the move for the Team of the Year was due to the strength of the midfield and forwardlines, and both players were deserving of a starting spot. Bessen and West Adelaide’s Hannah Button (named at half-forward) both earned a spot after being Second Team last year.

Completing the side are the remaining four interchange players, headlined by Leah Cutting who if it was not Moon, would have easily started ruck. The Woodville-West Torrens tall was joined by North Adelaide’s Julia Clark, Norwood’s Kiana Lee and West Adelaide’s Zoe Venning. The three most unlucky to miss out – and therefore named as emergencies – were state representatives Layla Vizgaudis and Lucy Waye, and Central District’s Lauren Breguet.

From a team representative perspective, the top two sides in Woodville-West Torrens (four) and South Adelaide (five) combined for nine players, with North Adelaide, Central District and West Adelaide all having three. Sturt, Norwood and Glenelg had two apiece. The remaining 24 players who missed out in the SANFL Women’s Team of the Year were sorted into a hypothetical Second Team of the Year.

The official SANFL Women’s Team of Year will be announced on Monday night and selected by an esteemed panel.

2025 ROOKIE ME CENTRAL SANFL WOMEN’S TEAM OF THE YEAR:

B: Madison Lane (Central District) – Madi Russell (West Adelaide) – Tessa Davis (Glenelg)
HB: Laela Ebert (North Adelaide) – Jamie Parish (North Adelaide) – Imogen Trengove (WWT Eagles)
C: Jade Halfpenny (Norwood) – Christina Leuzzi (WWT Eagles) – Monique Bessen (Sturt)
HF: Emma Charlton (South Adelaide) – Katelyn Rosenzweig (Central District) – Hannah Button (West Adelaide)
F: Tesharna Maher (Central District) – Klaudia O’Neill (WWT Eagles) – Shae Archbold (South Adelaide)
R: Soriah Moon (South Adelaide) – Isobel Kuiper (Sturt) (vc) – Jess Bates (c)
INT: Julia Clark (North Adelaide) – Caitlin Couch (South Adelaide) – Leah Cutting (WWT Eagles) – Kiana Lee (Norwood) – Taya Maxwell (South Adelaide) – Zoe Venning (West Adelaide)

EMG: Lauren Breguet (Central District) – Layla Vizgaudis (South Adelaide) – Lucy Waye (West Adelaide)

2025 ROOKIE ME CENTRAL SANFL WOMEN’S SECOND TEAM OF THE YEAR:

B: Ash Dyer-Pietsch (Glenelg) – Zahlia Niemann (WWT Eagles) – Jaslynne Smith (South Adelaide)
HB: Sarah Branford (Norwood) – Ella Metcalfe (North Adelaide) – Emily Mableson (West Adelaide)
C: Georgie Fielder (Glenelg) – Ruby Ballard (West Adelaide) – Mel Anderson (South Adelaide)
HF: Layla Vizgaudis (South Adelaide) – Polly Turner (North Adelaide) – Lucy Waye (West Adelaide)
F: Lauren Breguet (Central District) – Georgia King (Sturt – Aprille Crooks (North Adelaide)
R: Georgie Jaques (Norwood) – Dakota Williams (Central District) – Lucy Moore (WWT Eagles)
INT: Emily Bartsch (Norwood) – Isabella Drew (Sturt) – Marlie Fiegert (WWT Eagles) – Ash George (North Adelaide) – Georgia Swan (Sturt) – Djimila Totham (North Adelaide)