{"id":221917,"date":"2026-08-25T10:32:15","date_gmt":"2026-08-25T00:32:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/?p=221917"},"modified":"2026-08-25T10:32:17","modified_gmt":"2026-08-25T00:32:17","slug":"2026-talent-league-girls-r21-notes-tasmania-devils-vs-geelong-falcons","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/2026\/08\/25\/2026-talent-league-girls-r21-notes-tasmania-devils-vs-geelong-falcons\/","title":{"rendered":"2026 Talent League Girls R21 notes: Tasmania Devils vs. Geelong Falcons"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>GEELONG Falcons produced a four-goal third term to kick clear of Tasmania Devils on the Apple Isle and secure their spot in the Talent League Girls finals series. Wanting a response after a disappointing loss to Sandringham Dragons the week before, the Falcons took full advantage of a Devils side missing <strong>Matilda<\/strong> <strong>Lange<\/strong> and<strong> Evie Bingham<\/strong> to win, 9.6 (60) to 3.5 (23) at Windsor Park.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>We took note of some of the players who caught the eye with a focus on state representation.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div>\n<div class=\"t7_match_result match-result-comparison rmc-block is-match-preview\">\n<div class='match-result_legend'><ul><li>Team<\/li><\/ul><\/div><div class='match-result_team'><ul><li class='column-head'><h5 class='heading title h5'>Tasmania Devils<\/h5><img src='https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Tasmania-Devils-150x150.jpg' \/><\/li><\/ul><\/div><div class='match-result_team'><ul><li class='column-head'><h5 class='heading title h5'>Geelong Falcons<\/h5><img src='https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/geelong-150x150.jpg' \/><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<p><strong>TASMANIA DEVILS:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>#2<\/strong> <a data-type=\"player\" data-id=\"169317\" class=\"_dc_spo\" href=\"\/afl\/player\/evie-ward\/\" target=\"_blank\">Evie Ward<\/a><br><strong>Midfielder | 172cm | 29\/10\/2008<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Stats:<\/strong> 34 disposals, 1 mark, 5 tackles, 10 clearances, 4 inside 50s, 1 rebound 50<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Devils skipper was missing her two most common partners in crime through the midfield, but it did not stop her having a day out and being the clear standout for the Devils. Ward racked up a game-high 34 disposals and 10 clearances, being the main extractor from the coalface. She knows how to spin out of trouble or weave through traffic, while also getting her hands free to dispose of it effectively. Covers the ground exceptionally well to impact both offensively and defensively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>#8<\/strong> <a data-type=\"player\" data-id=\"178836\" class=\"_dc_spo\" href=\"\/afl\/player\/olivia-lyons\/\" target=\"_blank\">Olivia Lyons<\/a><br><strong>Defender\/Forward | 174cm | 20\/07\/2009<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Stats:<\/strong> 14 disposals, 3 marks, 1 hitout, 1 clearance, 1 inside 50, 3 rebound 50s, 1 goal<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Usually stationed in defence, that was where Lyons started, competing hard against the difficult matchup that was McKeegan. She held her own in one-on-one contests, was clean off the deck and even worked up the ground following her opponent to the wing when required. She moved forward in the second half &#8211; which she has done in seldom &#8211; to provide a scoring fix for the Devils, kicking a nice goal in the opening two minutes of the fourth term.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>#9 <\/strong><a data-type=\"player\" data-id=\"180969\" class=\"_dc_spo\" href=\"\/afl\/player\/luca-murgatroyd\/\" target=\"_blank\">Luca Murgatroyd<\/a><br><strong>Utility | 177cm | 01\/04\/2009<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Stats:<\/strong> 12 disposals, 1 mark, 1 tackle, 2 clearances, 2 rebound 50s<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Grabbing her opportunity to spend more time on-ball while also rolling both forward and defence during the match, Murgatroyd really showed her ability to impact across all three lines. Boasting a booming kick and natural footy smarts, the Tasmanian can both use her bigger frame around the stoppages, as well as be a marking target in transition. Not the biggest numbers, but she kept popping up and always seems to have little moments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"724\" src=\"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Evie-Ward-Tasmania-testing-1024x724.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-209065\" srcset=\"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Evie-Ward-Tasmania-testing-1024x724.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Evie-Ward-Tasmania-testing-300x212.jpg 300w, https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Evie-Ward-Tasmania-testing-768x543.jpg 768w, https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Evie-Ward-Tasmania-testing-1536x1087.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Evie-Ward-Tasmania-testing-128x91.jpg 128w, https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Evie-Ward-Tasmania-testing-32x23.jpg 32w, https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Evie-Ward-Tasmania-testing.jpg 1637w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Evie Ward was brilliant for the Devils. Image credit: via Tasmania Devils<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>GEELONG FALCONS:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>#5 <\/strong><a data-type=\"player\" data-id=\"156106\" class=\"_dc_spo\" href=\"\/afl\/player\/ava-bilyk\/\" target=\"_blank\">Ava Bilyk<\/a><br><strong>Midfielder\/Forward | 169cm | 07\/07\/2008<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Stats:<\/strong> 22 disposals, 3 marks, 6 tackles, 7 clearances, 2 inside 50s, 4 rebound 50s<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Bilyk did as she always does and provided a real thorn in the Tasmanian midfield&#8217;s side. Fortunately for the Devils, the Vic Country MVP was rotated forward for the last term with the result locked away, but the top-ager was still able to work up the ground and like a magnet, the ball just found her. The Geelong skipper&#8217;s work around the contest and clean hands were good, as was her defensive pressure, only adding an extra footnote of a game to a glittering junior career.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>#17<\/strong> <a data-type=\"player\" data-id=\"156121\" class=\"_dc_spo\" href=\"\/afl\/player\/greea-mckeegan\/\" target=\"_blank\">Greea McKeegan<\/a><br><strong>Tall Forward | 176cm | 15\/12\/2008<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Stats:<\/strong> 17 disposals, 6 marks, 7 tackles, 2 hitouts, 3 inside 50s, 1 rebound 50, 1 goal<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>McKeegan had a great battle with Lyons through the first half and was not just able to impact in the air, but also at ground level. Her work rate further afield was terrific, and she was just as strong applying defensive pressure as she was at finding targets forward of centre. McKeegan kicked a nice goal off a handball receive in the second term, and while had a real opportunity in the third getting goalside, she was bumped off it a touch too easily showing further improvement with her frame. From a footballing and athletic perspective, there&#8217;s a stack to like.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>#19<\/strong> <a data-type=\"player\" data-id=\"187213\" class=\"_dc_spo\" href=\"\/afl\/player\/jemma-andrews\/\" target=\"_blank\">Jemma Andrews<\/a><br><strong>Midfielder | 181cm | 28\/09\/2009<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Stats:<\/strong> 18 disposals, 2 marks, 4 tackles, 5 clearances, 3 inside 50s, 2 rebound 50s<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The big-bodied Andrews provided great support to Bilyk around the ball, and she quite often got first hands to it whether or not that came with an opponent attached to her. A long kick of the ball and competitive in the air, Andrews is a prototype modern-day midfielder, with the 181cm talent more than capable of holding down a key position role as well. Her defensive pressure was first-class as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>#21 <\/strong><a data-type=\"player\" data-id=\"187216\" class=\"_dc_spo\" href=\"\/afl\/player\/ella-condon\/\" target=\"_blank\">Ella Condon<\/a><br><strong>Key Defender | 185cm | 23\/04\/2009<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Stats:<\/strong> 16 disposals, 7 marks, 3 tackles, 2 hitouts, 1 clearance, 2 rebound 50s<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A brick wall at half-back, Condon&#8217;s ability to just be in the right positions at the right time was evident. The 2025 Vic Country Under 16s MVP clunked mark after mark and her size enabled her to either reach over opponents or be unmovable by smaller Devils. Most of the time she simply just read the ball better, finding space around that defensive 50 arc, and she was effective by foot, finishing the game with 85.7 per cent kicking efficiency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>#23<\/strong> <a data-type=\"player\" data-id=\"187537\" class=\"_dc_spo\" href=\"\/afl\/player\/holly-confoy\/\" target=\"_blank\">Holly Confoy<\/a><br><strong>Defender\/Midfielder | 172cm | 06\/04\/2009<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Stats:<\/strong> 21 disposals, 6 marks, 5 tackles, 1 clearance, 5 inside 50s, 2 rebound 50s<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The bottom-ager is usually one tasked with the kickouts at different times, but got her chance to spend extended minutes on-ball and played a pivotal role alongside Bilyk and Andrews. She took a number of strong marks between the arcs, was able to provide some transition between the arcs and did a little bit of everything with her ability to intercept in the air, and scrap defensively at ground level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>#27<\/strong> <a data-type=\"player\" data-id=\"187535\" class=\"_dc_spo\" href=\"\/afl\/player\/claudia-collins\/\" target=\"_blank\">Claudia Collins<\/a><br><strong>Tall Forward | 176cm | 26\/05\/2009<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Stats:<\/strong> 15 disposals, 5 marks, 3 tackles, 1 clearance, 1 inside 50, 4 goals, 3 behinds<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Producing a memorable performance up forward, Collins created a stack of chances on goal and slammed home four majors in the first 50 minutes of the game. She kicked her first from a set shot, then two were brilliant strikes on the run, and finished off with her fourth following a free kick at the top of the goalsquare. Her last three game in the opening 10 minutes of the third term and she continued to look dangerous throughout, recording seven scoring shots from her 15 disposals.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-dc-block-dc-mention _dc_mention\"><div class=\"section-heading_wrap\"><span class=\"section-heading is-small\">Mentions<\/span><span class=\"hor-border\"><\/span><\/div><ul class=\"js-overflow-list overflow-list\"><li class=\"object-mention_single\"><div class=\"tag tag--is-clickable\"><a class=\"tag-text _dc_mention_p\" href=\"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/player\/evie-ward\/\">Evie Ward<\/a><\/div><\/li><li class=\"object-mention_single\"><div class=\"tag tag--is-clickable\"><a class=\"tag-text _dc_mention_p\" href=\"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/player\/olivia-lyons\/\">Olivia Lyons<\/a><\/div><\/li><li class=\"object-mention_single\"><div class=\"tag tag--is-clickable\"><a class=\"tag-text _dc_mention_p\" href=\"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/player\/luca-murgatroyd\/\">Luca Murgatroyd<\/a><\/div><\/li><li class=\"object-mention_single\"><div class=\"tag tag--is-clickable\"><a class=\"tag-text _dc_mention_p\" href=\"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/player\/ava-bilyk\/\">Ava Bilyk<\/a><\/div><\/li><li class=\"object-mention_single\"><div class=\"tag tag--is-clickable\"><a class=\"tag-text _dc_mention_p\" href=\"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/player\/greea-mckeegan\/\">Greea McKeegan<\/a><\/div><\/li><li class=\"object-mention_single\"><div class=\"tag tag--is-clickable\"><a class=\"tag-text _dc_mention_p\" href=\"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/player\/jemma-andrews\/\">Jemma Andrews<\/a><\/div><\/li><li class=\"object-mention_single\"><div class=\"tag tag--is-clickable\"><a class=\"tag-text _dc_mention_p\" href=\"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/player\/ella-condon\/\">Ella Condon<\/a><\/div><\/li><li class=\"object-mention_single\"><div class=\"tag tag--is-clickable\"><a class=\"tag-text _dc_mention_p\" href=\"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/player\/holly-confoy\/\">Holly Confoy<\/a><\/div><\/li><li class=\"object-mention_single\"><div class=\"tag tag--is-clickable\"><a class=\"tag-text _dc_mention_p\" href=\"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/player\/claudia-collins\/\">Claudia Collins<\/a><\/div><\/li><li class=\"object-mention_single\"><div class=\"tag tag--is-clickable\"><a class=\"tag-text _dc_mention_e\" href=\"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/event\/tasmania-devils-vs-geelong-falcons\/\">Tasmania Devils vs Geelong Falcons<\/a><\/div><\/li><li class=\"js-dropdown dropdown overflowed\"><button class=\"btn btn-icon-only\"><span class=\"icon btn-icon\">\n                    <!-- icon - plus circle - 20px-->\n                    <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 20 20\">\n                        <path d=\"M15,9.28h-4.3V5h0A.72.72,0,1,0,9.28,5h0V9.28H5a.72.72,0,0,0,0,1.43H9.28V15a.72.72,0,0,0,1.43,0h0V10.71H15a.72.72,0,0,0,0-1.43Z\"\/>\n                        <path d=\"M10,0A10,10,0,1,0,20,10,10,10,0,0,0,10,0Zm0,18.57A8.57,8.57,0,0,1,10,1.43h0a8.57,8.57,0,0,1,0,17.14Z\"\/>\n                    <\/svg>\n                <\/span><\/button><div class=\"popover\"><div class=\"popover-content\"><ul class=\"popover-menu\"><\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>GEELONG Falcons produced a four-goal third term to kick clear of Tasmania Devils on the Apple Isle and secure their spot in the Talent League Girls finals series. Wanting a response after a disappointing loss to Sandringham Dragons the week before, the Falcons took full advantage of a Devils side missing Matilda Lange and Evie [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":64,"featured_media":221930,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14920,18217,8,11,20258,3133,18224,3134,137],"tags":[21461,22558,22383,21528,21791,22557,22537,22515,22542,20822],"class_list":["post-221917","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-aflw-draft","category-geelong-falcons-girls","category-news","category-scouting-notes","category-talent-league-girls","category-tasmania","category-tasmania-devils-girls","category-victoria","category-womens","tag-ava-bilyk","tag-claudia-collins","tag-ella-condon","tag-evie-ward","tag-greea-mckeegan","tag-holly-confoy","tag-jemma-andrews","tag-luca-murgatroyd","tag-olivia-lyons","tag-tasmania-devils-vs-geelong-falcons"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/221917","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/64"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=221917"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/221917\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":221954,"href":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/221917\/revisions\/221954"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/221930"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=221917"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=221917"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=221917"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}