LAST year’s AFL Women’s Draft lived up to all expectations after being dubbed a ‘Super Draft’ in August 2023. Two years on, with the players from that draft crop having started making their AFLW debuts, it is clear that the 2024 draft crop is like none other.

A host of draftees made their debut in Round 1 and we take a look at some of them, and what their coaches had to say.

STAR PERFORMANCES:

Lucia Painter (West Coast – Midfielder/Forward) – RISING STAR NOMINATION

Stats: 13 disposals, 5 marks, 3 tackles, 3 clearances, 4 inside 50s, 3 goals

Daisy Pearce said…

“Great to see her get reward. Lu’s an incredibly hard worker, she’s super driven, got a lot of talent. When you see her from February to now, the work that she’s put in it’s just great to see her go out there and get the reward. She’d be the first to say is that a lot of it came off the back of some really hard work and other players around her playing her role. Don’t want to ignore them, Lu got to get the benefits from it, which is exciting for a kid on her debut, but she’s just getting started.”

Zippy Fish (Sydney – Defender)

Stats: 26 disposals, 5 marks, 2 tackles, 2 inside 50s, 11 rebound 50s

Scott Gowans said…

“Zippy’s a star isn’t she? She’s such a composed footballer and we knew when we drafted her what we were getting and we couldn’t believe other clubs passed on her and she fell down to us, it was unbelievable. I think just her composure for someone that is brand new to the game and in the heat against a really contested game, she was able to get run off half-back and just make great decisions with the footy. I’m excited to see once she builds into her body a little bit more and builds her engine up, she’ll definitely go through the midfield at different stages and that will be really nice getting her to deliver the ball in the front half to Chloe (Molloy).”

Havana Harris (Gold Coast – Forward)

Stats: 16 disposals, 6 marks, 4 tackles, 4 inside 50s, 1 goal

Rhyce Shaw said…

“We think Hav can probably play anywhere, but forward is her spot at the moment, and all we want to do is make sure we put her in the spot to compete and she can do her thing and that’s really important. She’s still young, one game into her career, she’s got to learn what it takes and that’s really important for us. She did exactly what we required and a little bit more so that’s a really good sign.”

BIG MOMENTS:

Poppy Scholz & Sophie McKay (Carlton)

Matthew Buck said….

“I’ve spoken about them a fair bit in the preseason in terms of the professionalism that they came in with. Sophie had a shoulder reconstruction so had to get after rehab which is hard to do when you come in and try and be a ew player in a club as well. “But I can’t fault the way Soph has gone about her work. “Some of her stuff wasn’t great, but her intensity and effort to tidy up is always there. “Soph will continue to get better as more games we get into her.

“Then Poppy burst onto the scene there with a spin through the middle and then managed to kick a goal too, I’m just really excited for the player Poppy can become. She’s physically grown over the six months that we’ve had her. With respect that the high performance team has put into her, and the way she’s applied herself, so she should continue to grow and get better every week I’m sure of it today.”

Ash Centra (Collingwood)

Sam Wright said…

“She’s got a cult following every time she went near the ball whether she got it or not, you could hear the crowd get up and about. I just think it’s so great for our game. I mean the long sleeves, you could see her coming from a mile away because you could hear the crowd building. I was really happy for her that she kicked that goal, but she’s going to be a serious player.”

Grace Belloni, Holly Ridewood & Taya Chambers (Essendon)

Nat Wood said…

“It was terrific to have them out here but also too we were really bullish on their ability to impact early and it was terrific to see all three of our debutants. I thought Grace’s adaption up forward and ability to compete was great, Holly Ridewood’s transition up and down the ground and pressure on the goals as well, hitting the scoreboard and Taya coming up against some really fast and strong forwards I thought Taya’s positioning in defence and the way she slotted into that system has been great so it was really great to see them have a great Round 1.”