FOUR teams are set to become two as the second week of the Victorian Football League (VFL) Women’s finals begins on Saturday. If the ladder is anything to go by, Collingwood is a clear contender given their monumental season that consisted of a clean sweep of wins in the competition. Despite Collingwood coming into the semi-finals with the upper-hand, there is no doubt that all the four teams will be facing the heat, as the pressure builds up to see who will take out the premiership this year.

COLLINGWOOD vs. ESSENDON
Saturday, July 10 @ 12:00pm
Victoria Park

Essendon will be heading into the opening game with a vengeance as they take on the team with a 14-game winning streak. The last time these two sides met was in Round 8 when the Bombers were overpowered by 10 points as a result of a dominant Collingwood side. Expect the likes of Georgia Nanscawen to play a pivotal part of their game, with her performance in last week’s win against the Casey Demons unstoppable as the 29-year-old impressed with her versatility on the field. Eliza West is another name from Essendon in the mix to play on Saturday, whose consistency with handballs and kicks have massively contributed to the Bombers’ performance so far. Lauren Ahrens, Cecila McIntosh and Georgie Prespakis will also be beneficial in the Bombers quest to overthrow the Pies. Collingwood’s aim to continue their perfect run so far has some easy picks. Midfielders Joanna Lin and Mikaela Cann are two youngsters who both got in amongst the action during the first elimination final with Geelong. The trio of Chole Molloy, Lauren Butler and Amelia Velardo would be ones to watch given their performances were stellar in the game against Geelong last week, while Jennifer Guy returns to the fray.

GEELONG vs. SOUTHERN SAINTS
Saturday, July 10 @ 2:00pm
GMHBA Stadium

It will be important for Geelong to get the win given that they saw defeat against Collingwood in the first final last week. There will be no more chances for either side come Saturday. The Cats will want to keep momentum, as the last time these two sides met Geelong took out the win on both occasions. Despite the winning streak advantage for the Cats, the Southern Saints are looking to put everything on the line in an effort to progress to the prelim next week. Among the best performers for Geelong, they will be looking to Laura Gardiner, Tamara Smith and Paige Sheppard who rank among the top ten in the competition for disposals, kicks and handballs. Olivia Fuller and Madeleine Boyd’s consistency throughout the season can contribute a healthy amount to Geelong on Saturday afternoon. For the Southern Saints, Gabriella De Angelis‘s fierce impact during last week’s final will prove a valuable asset for the side, as will the dynamics of Tara Bohanna and Hannah Stuart. Both players delivered equally impressive performances particularly last week against Port Melbourne.

Picture credit: Collingwood VFLW