Fremantle 3.0 18 4.0 24 5.5 35 6.7 43 Carlton 0.2 2 3.2 20 4.3 27 4.3 27
Venue: Domain Stadium
Date: Friday March 10, 2017 (6.05 pm)
Result: Lost by 16 points
Crowd: 2,064
Goalkickers: Darcy Vescio 3.1, Jordan Ivey 1.0, Rushed 0.2.
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Shaun Kirk-Williams, Alex Paton, Justin Power
Injuries: Hardimann (ankle)
Ladder: 4th

Game Review

Blues hit roadblock in Perth
Fremantle has defeated Carlton by 16 points to register its maiden AFLW victory in hot conditions at Domain Stadium on Friday afternoon. The Dockers started strongly with three goals in the opening term, while restricting Carlton’s forward supply. The Blues broke Fremantle’s bind in the second term thanks largely to marquee selections Darcy Vescio and Brianna Davey, both of whom were influential in reducing the deficit to just four points at the long break. But the Dockers, guilty of second-half fadeouts throughout the season, rallied strongly after half-time, registering 13 scoring shots to Carlton’s two. Fremantle coach Michelle Cowan said her side needed to make a stand after last week’s one-point loss to Collingwood. Cowan praised her players’ work ethic, highlighting their determination and focus as hallmark attributes in the historic win. “We drew the line in the sand essentially and wanted to make a statement,” Cowan said. “They’ve worked really hard with every pre-season running session that they’ve had and the challenging start to this season.” “They’re an incredible group that were driven all along. “The morale around the club has been exceptional, considering the draw and the one-point loss.” The loss could prove damaging for the Blues, whose finals aspirations will end if Adelaide defeat Melbourne at home on Saturday afternoon. However, Carlton coach Damien Keeping said his team’s focus lied beyond reaching the AFLW grand final. “I don’t think at any stage we’ve been narrowly focused on the scoreboard and the outcome of the scoreboard,” Keeping said. “We understood that we needed to keep winning, but we wanted to look for those opportunities to grow through every experience.” “We were dependent on a number of other results to go our way that were out of our control, but we’ve got another game next week and we’ve looked upon this season as seven games.” Provided Carlton wins its final game, the Blues are still reliant upon the Crows losing their two remaining matches, while Melbourne would need to lose in the final round of the AFLW season. Given the Crows’ superior percentage, a finals berth would still remain unlikely. - Rory Coleman-Heard, AFL Media.


Marquee magic
Carlton marquee pair Darcy Vescio and Brianna Davey were comfortably among their side’s best with influential performances at either end of the ground. Manned tightly by half-back Cassie Davidson, Vescio was crafty with her body work and found open space running into goal on several occasions. She finished with three goals and extended her lead atop the AFLW goalkicking table. Davey was equally damaging in her own right, reading the ball superbly to intercept a number of Fremantle’s attacking forays. For the home side, Kara Donnellan was best on ground with 24 disposals, eight tackles and a crucial final-quarter goal. The Dockers captain was clean in possession, explosive at stoppages and made good decisions to help her side register its second-highest score in the AFLW to date. Rory Coleman-Heard, AFL Media.


Blues lose to Freo
Carlton succumbed to a disappoining loss in its second and last interstate trip of the NAB AFL Women’s League on Friday, unable to conquer Fremantle in a 16-point loss at Domain Stadium. A crowd of 2,064 witnessed the Dockers lead at every change and keep the Blues scoreless in the final term, making it very difficult for Carlton to secure a grand-final spot with one round remaining. The classy Darcy Vescio was a shining light in attack for the Blues, consistently beating the Dockers’ defence and finding space to boot three majors on a tough night. Defensive general Brianna Davey (14 disposals, four marks, three rebound 50s) was instrumental yet again, intercepting several of the Dockers’ attacks inside 50 to keep Carlton with a sniff and finish with the highest disposal count of any Blue. But unfortunately Carlton didn't have contributors, with Fremantle dominating the stats in its first AFLW win. Not only did the Dockers beat the Blues in the disposal count (174-138), they also led in clearances (28-20), inside 50s (30-13), marks inside 50 (10-2), contested possessions (97-83) and tackles (74-37). Carlton’s kicking efficiency fell to 45 per cent, with several key Blues curtailed by the girls in purple. Tilly Lucas-Rodd (11 disposals) and Sarah Hosking (nine disposals, three tackles) tried to get the Blues’ running game going but when reliable defender Danielle Hardiman (nine disposals, three tackles, three rebound 50s) went down in the second half with an ankle injury, the Blues' task was made harder. The intensity and grunt work from Katie Loynes (eight disposals, six tackles) and Shae Audley (seven disposals, seven tackles) would’ve pleased coach Damien Keeping, but with goalless quarters in the first and last terms, it was always going to be difficult for the Blues to take the four points home. Carlton’s chances of a grand-final berth are now slim with a home clash against the undefeated Brisbane Lions on Sunday remaining. - Justin Cooper; Carlton Media


Best players; Darcy Vescio, Lauren Arnell, Brianna Davey, Sarah Hosking, Tilly Lucas-Rodd, Biannca Jakobsson.

Team

B:	14 Laura Attard	1 Brianna Davey	18 Tilly Lucas-Rodd
HB:	12 Lauren Brazzale	31 Danielle Hardimann	28 Jordan Ivey
C:		13 Lauren Arnell (c)
HF:	26 Shae Audley	25 Katie Shierlaw	22 Bella Ayre
F:	3 Darcy Vescio	16 Breann Moody	10 Sarah Hosking
Ruck:	30 Allison Downie	2 Katie Loynes	5 Katie Gillespie-Jones
Interchange:	23 Jessica Kennedy	20 Tahni Nestor	4 Madeline Keryk
	27 Allison Brown	35 Bianca Jakobsson	6 Gabriella Pound
Coach:	Damien Keeping
Emg:	8 Kate Darby	9 Rebecca Privitelli

Changes:
In: Jessica Kennedy, Jordan Ivey
Out: Nat Exon (injured), Rebecca Privitelli (omitted)

Milestones

Debut and First Goal: Jordan Ivey
Last Game: Jessica Kennedy

MVP Votes

3 - Kara Donnellan (FREM)
2 - Alicia Janz (FREM)
1 - Lauren Arnell (CARL)

Best and Fairest Votes

5 - Bri Davey, Tilly Lucas-Rodd
4 - Lauren Arnell
3 - Alison Downie, Sarah Hosking
2 - Darcy Vescio, Katie Loynes, Breann Moody, Tahni Nestor, Danielle Hardiman
1 - Laura Attard, Shae Audley, Jordan Ivey

Video

Links

AFLW Season 2017 | Round 5 | Round 7