AFLW NMFC AFLW 2025 | 27 straight wins | 29 games unbeaten | Back to Back premiers 2024/25 | Invincibles | KLWT goes into the draft

[The Nostradamus]

dawes just looks so annoying like a little chihuahua that wont shut up

if you are 4 goals down maybe just pipe down and focus on yourself

try being more composed instead of an adhd child

 

[giantroo]

"But their ability to get from something that looks like a really nasty, contested situation and then get it quickly out by hand … is elite. Like, seriously elite."

 

[Hearts to hearts]

Your best players and biggest leaders have to be in control of their emotions when the pressure is on. That way they can turn the dial up or down as appropriate to help their team. Jas & Emma have that calculating presence and know what to do and when to do it to set the tone. Bella & Dakota are younger and don’t yet have themselves centred like that. If they ever develop that level of emotional control both they and their team will take a serious step up.

Loved that Age article about how they decided in 2023 not to be intimidated any more, but to be intimidating - by how they played, not being “rah rah rah” Jas said.

 

[giantroo]

She was angry.

She dumped Ash here and stood over her

 

[The Nostradamus]

next time we play lions i want dawes name circled on the whiteboard the little rat needs some treatment

 

[toepoker]

Yep - just for the novelty value but you get my point. Filling Fed Square for a free concert wouldn't be difficult.

FWIW, they sold out a 10000 seat arena in London a few weeks ago.
I'm 55 and I bloody love 'em

 

[Makeshift Park]

try being more composed instead of an adhd child

Now now mate, it would be a little hypocritical for us, the perennially online and North obsessed, to start playing the neurospicy card on oppo players.

 

[DarwinRoo]

Bottom six of our side, not list, right? So that means she is outside the top 10.

In no particular order:
Garner
Riddell
Kearney
O'Shea
Sheerin
Birch
Randall
Bogue
Bruton
Ferguson
O'Loughlin
Wall
Shierlaw
Craven

That is 14 that would be in the top 10 consideration of the side ahead of her and considering Mia King, Bresnahan and Wright would be in there if available then it sounds reasonable.

She would be in the Gatt, Smith, Rennie, King, Eddey, Tripodi group which would be next tier and they would be ahead of Shannon, Boyd and whomever plays when we have injuries.

Everyone of the bolded players are above Shierlaw.

 

[north_lad]

next time we play lions i want dawes name circled on the whiteboard the little rat needs some treatment

why bother? we're too good as is

 

[DarwinRoo]

Tripodi stiff here... but I suppose accurate.

Pushed out by sheerin last night which is why there was no need for mia king to come in. Tripodi for king was the call, and you just don't do that when tripodi was performing anyway

There was no ****ing chance in hell that Tripodi would be the one making way for Mia King.

 

[Only Forwards]

why bother? we're too good as is

in reality we won't.

 

[Tas]

Everyone of the bolded players are above Shierlaw.

Perhaps, but Shierlaw wouldn't be in the top 10 either.

 

[Blightys Barrel]

No dramas with his presser at all.
However l stand by each point l raised as they are absolutely valid, from the lead up to the game, to watching the game now three times.

Over did it with the fake push in back each time....obviously a team directive (lost count how many times this happened…including the one that led to the biggest brain snap of the game)
Outplayed ( absolutely smashed in uncontested possessions, wasted huge amount of fwd entries ect)
Outmatched ( absolutely failed to make changes ….continued to make minimal adjustments when the heat was applied…left to the few. Dawes and who else )
Out muscled ( their playbook of bully and bash no longer stands up …that’s 5 thumpings and continues to play the same way. That’s a coach who hasn’t adapted to challenge)
Out scored ( second biggest losing margin in a gf )
Out dated fwd line ...has anyone seen Dakota…( absolutely went missing, along with you could argue their entire fwd line….credit to our backline )
Out of excuses....we're the underdogs...going into 7th grand final ( point made on AFLW wrap up…the ledger suggests you get to gf …but your systems not very good. 2 wins 5 losses)
Out of ideas...argued with every umpire call ( watch each call that goes our way in a contest and you’ll see most of their players argue ..raise arms at the officials )

As for taking the headline out of context "There were some monumental sort of blunders there along the way."
Nope….the above points are my opinions, and pair up perfectly with that statement taken from the article , which l also do believe he said would haunt Quite a few of them.
Yes his a straight shooter…. But the continued plan of particularly the first point l raised, throw in the knees in the back, front on contact with no intention to go for the ball, sliding in as the second tackler ( twice on Karney who remonstrated with the officials ) l could go on ..heck all the points l raised is a reflection on his game plan and coaching acumen. 5 times he’s persisted with pre gf 2024 game plan…and as Kate Mac said 5 times they have now been absolutely mauled. Nice guy but his game plan as l said above simply doesn’t stand up….particularly when playing a system like ours.

Great summary Roostorm

History and sport repeat. In 1999 the Wallabies won the World Cup. I remember the coach Rod MacQueen talking about playing the Irish in one of the matches in the tournament. They were wound up like a clock and could be heard bashing and crashing lockers in the rooms before even out on the ground. Then onto the ground and belting out their national anthem in full voice before the kick off.

MacQueen said this manic pressure is just not sustainable over 80 mins of game time. To paraphrase he said we weather the storm and stick to our structure and game plan. He kept it simple. The ground is divided up into 8 rectangles. Within each rectangle there are only 3 possibilities. They have it, you have it or is in dispute. Each player knew exactly where to stand and their role. That’s the discipline part and sustaining that for 80 mins, rather than flat out exhaustion of the team by not spreading the energy over the match duration.

Starcevich and the coaching staff perhaps would have taken a leaf out of this approach. There poor GF strike rate suggests they need to change a lot of their program. He should ask Fagan for some tips.

 

[CURVE]

A great little article on everyone's favourite Irishwoman, Erika O'Shea. Love the photo of her with the two cups.

The early lesson that helped premiership Roo find her feet

The early lesson that helped premiership Roo find her feet​

Erika O'Shea has settled in to become a key part of the all-conquering Roos, and an early lesson helped her discover what it would take
By Gemma Bastiani
Nov 30, 2025, 4:32 pm

Erika O'Shea poses for a photo after North Melbourne's AFLW Grand Final win over Brisbane on November 29, 2025. Picture: AFL Photos

WHEN Erika O'Shea first arrived in Australia to try her hand at AFLW footy back in 2022, she had a reality check.

A big tackle from then-teammate Grace Campbell was an immediate lesson in the physicality she would need to handle should she succeed at Australia's game.

Now, as a two-time premiership player, O'Shea might still be slightly built, but she bounces back up from tough hits ready and raring to go again.

"I've definitely done a lot of gym so I feel like I can take a tackle a bit more now, especially after (strength and conditioning) training. So, I hope I can take a bit of a heavy tackle," O'Shea told AFL.com.au with a laugh.

"We have people like Emma Kearney who's just so physical, and we just strive to learn from them players who are more experienced, and I'm really grateful to be playing alongside such amazing players."

As one of North Melbourne's best in its record back-to-back premiership on Saturday evening, O'Shea played 100 per cent of game time and landed some crucial touches to quell an early Brisbane attack.

Hailing from county Cork in Ireland, O'Shea was almost immediately a first-choice pick across the Roos' half-back line thanks to her speed and elite ball use. She perfectly fit the system that the club was building. Her importance to that system has steadily grown over her four seasons, culminating in career-best numbers throughout North Melbourne's perfect season this year.

O'Shea has averaged personal best numbers for disposals (16.5), score involvements (2.4) intercepts (6.3), and metres gained (305.5), sitting third at North Melbourne for the latter two.

"With leaders like Jasmine Garner who’s just so calm and never, ever gets stressed, I suppose that goes through the group, and she relaxes all of us and sets the tone," O'Shea said.

 

[Horace]

Gotta get a better goal song Bruton

You are of course joking. I hope to hear it multi times every game, year in year out.

So great her 3 goals on Saturday after her heartbreak in 2023. If she had not torn her Achilles, I believe we would have been celebrating a Threepeat on Saturday night. Easy to forget but she was such a gun midfielder before her Achilles injury.

 

[Daniltchenko You Beauty]

Hahahahahaha

 

[Blightys Barrel]

Hahahahahaha

This is what happens when you have a winning culture. Complete opposite of the men’s program that could only dream of having top rated juniors wanting to come across.

 

[Caracas]

Before the game, when they were calling out all the North players’ names, I realised that every single one of them were deadset capable of turning the game in our favour. It was almost like we got hoarse from cheering for each one. I suppose Eliza was the only “journey” player. However, there is a good story about her and we just knew she would stand up when her moment arrived. The rest of the team all have X factor. Smith is elite below her knees.

 

[amaz199]

I'm sure the other clubs won't mind.

Can't beat us, join us.

 

[speedy]

Was that at half time? Only found the footage last night of Kearney sarcastically clapping at Davidson after her ludicrous “shot” after the siren from near half way and Dawes come flying at her.

Also didn’t see at the game, but saw on the replay, Kearney get up grinning after Davidson stepped on her calf getting up after an early tackle.

She did actually step on her calf? I thought at the time it didn’t happen because of kearney’s non reaction. Davidson needs to get weeks for that.

 

[Ashley B]

You are of course joking. I hope to hear it multi times every game, year in year out.

So great her 3 goals on Saturday after her heartbreak in 2023. If she had not torn her Achilles, I believe we would have been celebrating a Threepeat on Saturday night. Easy to forget but she was such a gun midfielder before her Achilles injury.

I did say that when the hot potato song was going the other team would f k n hate it lol. Rubbing salt into the wounds that song

 

[giantroo]

 

[gokangas]

FWIW, they sold out a 10000 seat arena in London a few weeks ago.
I'm 55 and I bloody love 'em

They are unlistenable. Cannot understand a word she screams, the 'musicians' seem to all be playing something different but just start and finish at the same time. Add to that she has a foul mouth. Not for me.

 

[The Nostradamus]

Hahahahahaha

winners win

another win for the good guys

 

[giantroo]