VFLW Game Day VFLW 2021 Season - Preliminary Final loss to Geelong

[Lore]

2021 VFLW FIXTURE:

ROUND	OPPONENT	TIME/DATE	VENUE	RESULT
1	Southern Saints (H)	10:30am, Sunday, February 28	NEC Hangar	LOSS: Match Report
2	Casey Demons (A)	1pm, Sunday, March 7	Casey Fields	WIN: Match Report
3	Hawthorn (H)	11am, Saturday, March 13	NEC Hangar	WIN: Match Report
4	Darebin (H)	10:30am, Sunday, March 21	NEC Hangar	WIN: Match Report
5	Port Melbourne (H)	10:30am, Sunday, March 28	NEC Hangar	LOSS: Match Report
6	Hawthorn (A)	10:30am, Saturday, April 10	Box Hill City Oval	WIN: Match Report
7	Williamstown (H)	11am, Saturday, April 17	NEC Hangar	WIN: Match Report
8	Collingwood (A)	11am, Sunday, April 25	NEC Hangar	LOSS: Match Report
9	Carlton (H)	10am, Saturday, May 1	Windy Hill	WIN: Match Report
10	Geelong (A)	1pm, Saturday, May 8	Deakin (Geelong)	LOSS: Match Report
11	Western Bulldogs (H)	11am, Saturday, May 15	Windy Hill	LOSS: Match Report
12	North Melbourne (H)	10am, Saturday, May 22	Windy Hill	postponed/abandoned
13	Darebin (A)	12pm, Saturday, May 29	Bill Lawry Oval	postponed/abandoned
14	Williamstown (A)	1pm, Saturday, June 19	Downer Oval	WIN: Match Report
15	Darebin (A)	12pm, Saturday, June 26	Bill Lawry Oval	WIN: Match Report
EF	Casey Demons (A)	12pm, Saturday, July 3	Casey Fields	WIN: Match Report
SF	Collingwood (A)	12pm, Saturday, July 10	Victoria Park	LOSS: Match Report
PF	Geelong (H)	12pm, Saturday, July 31	Windy Hill	LOSS: Match Report

 

[Bombermania]

People talk about the standard of women's footy but overlook the umpiring which sees a lot more let go than is let go in the men's game.

 

[Dave]

Half time. down 1.4-10 to 0.4-4.

 

[Lore]

Half time. down 1.4-10 to 0.4-4.

Hopefully the scoring opens up in the second half. That Molloy though... can't let her get away.

 

[Lore]

Goal to Collingwood, 16-4 now

 

[Lore]

GOAL!

16-10

 

[Lore]

3QT

Collingwood 2.6 18
Essendon 1.4 10

 

[Lore]

Emotions running high, nearly got to fisticuffs

 

[Lore]

Nanscawen is a real talent, she's just everywhere in the contest and generally really clean. Prespakis reported for a dangerous tackle :\

 

[Lore]

FT

COL 2.6 18
ESS 1.5 11

7 point loss. Collingwood through to the grand final, we have the double chance so need to beat the winner of the other semi in the prelim.

 

[Bombermania]

The Bombers just need to find a forward target because that is about all that separates them from Collingwood.

 

[Lore]

The Bombers just need to find a forward target because that is about all that separates them from Collingwood.

Being a little cleaner particularly in the first half would help. If you can't take a mark then there ends up being a lot more contests and congestion to deal with. Makes it easier to defend but the attack is so easily blanketed...

Really liked that run down the near wing, I don't know her name but she took like 5 bounces, Hindy style

 

[Megabattimus]

Out of the two remaining semi final teams, who do we want to play in the prelim?

On Pixel 3 using BigFooty.com mobile app

 

[sanaya]

was a good effort by essendon, basically great all over the ground except the fwd 50/entries in there, should they win next week there should be faith that they can match pies in a rematch

also selfish from me but im kind of glad that essendon lost because i want slender to get another game under her belt so she can hopefully show some better performances


but with the borough out, essendons the team that im behind as i like ugle, barba, slender and prespakis (also there should be 0 chance prespakis actually gets suspsended from the report)

 

[eth-dog]

Out of the two remaining semi final teams, who do we want to play in the prelim?

On Pixel 3 using BigFooty.com mobile app

Saints finished 6th so them probably. Weird finals system

 

[Lore]

Out of the two remaining semi final teams, who do we want to play in the prelim?

On Pixel 3 using BigFooty.com mobile app

I haven't watched any VFLW except our own games, so I have nothing to go off except the ladder – Geelong finished 2nd after H&A and Saints finished 6th. Both beat us in the respective H&A matches, Saints at home at the Hangar in R1, and Geelong away at Deakin Uni in R10.

Might be worth watching their semi-final to see which one looks easier to beat

Started 5m ago: https://www.afl.com.au/news/643203/watch-it-live-the-vflw-finals



I think it's actually kind of impressive that we're holding our own against AFLW aligned teams. We don't have the luxury of the best players in the country playing for our state-league side, but we kept it to a reasonably tight contest and had our chances.

 

[naraku]

The Bombers just need to find a forward target because that is about all that separates them from Collingwood.

Sounds familiar!



Good work from the girl's. Hopefully we get another shot at Collingwood in a fortnight.

 

[CrowdedHouse]

Next weekend, most likely lunchtime Saturday, Essendon v Geelong at Windy Hill in the Preliminary Final.

 

[Lore]

Match report for the semi-final loss to Collingwood

VFLW Bombers beaten, but advance to prelim
Essendon falls to the undefeated Collingwood in its VFLW semi-final, but advances to the preliminary finals.
By Celie Hay - 1 day ago

Mia-Rae Clifford gets a kick away against Collingwood at Victoria Park. (Photo: AFL Photos)

Essendon has suffered an eight-point loss to the undefeated Collingwood in Saturday’s VFLW semi-final at Victoria Park.

The Bombers have a second chance and will compete in next weekend’s preliminary finals against Geelong, while the Pies advance to the Grand Final with their 2.6 (18) to 1.5 (11) victory.

Captain Georgia Nanscawen led from the first bounce, setting an example for her teammates by using her strength to extract the ball from stoppages and send the ball in the forward direction.

Both sides were physical early, attempting to lock the ball in their respective halves, but Eloise Ashley-Cooper and Lauren Ahrens stood strong across the Bombers’ backline to ensure the opposition didn’t score.

After a goalless first term, Ruby Svarc came out with intent, using her speed to chase down her opponent and lifting the Bombers’ intensity.

Collingwood broke through for its first major 10 minutes into the second quarter but the Bombers’ spirit didn’t drop.

Georgie Prespakis used her smooth skills at stoppages to clear the ball to the wing to Svarc, who sent the ball in a forward direction.

Georgie Prespakis found plenty of the footy against the Pies. (Photo: Celie Hay)

The Pies took a seven-point advantage into the main break and further extended their lead early in the third quarter.

In the second half, Nanscawen dominated the midfield to finish with a match-high 28 disposals and 13 tackles, resulting in a best-on-ground performance.

Captain Georgia Nanscawen starred with a match-high 28 disposals. (Photo: AFL Photos)

Jessie Davies crumbed the ball off the back of a pack to kick Essendon’s first major and reduce the Pies’ lead to eight points heading into the final break.

Energy was high in the Bombers’ camp after a stirring address from head coach Brendan Major and the girls came out firing to try to overturn the deficit.

Head coach Brendan Major fires up his side at three-quarter time. (Photo: Celie Hay)

Svarc used her speed along the wing to out-run opponents and sent the ball into the forward 50, but the Bombers didn't capitalise.

Zali Friswell helped Essendon control the play in the final quarter but the Pies held on for a narrow eight-point win.

Learning from the league leaders

The Bombers went into Saturday’s semi-final as underdogs with the Pies coming into the game with 15 straight wins, including a qualifying final victory over the second-placed Geelong.

While the Bombers challenged but couldn’t overcome the league leaders, midfielder Alana Barba said they could learn from playing against the experienced Collingwood outfit to better themselves for next weekend’s preliminary final.

“Georgie Prespakis absolutely tore it up through the midfield and Courtney Ugle showed her hard tackling pressure, while ‘C-Bomb’ (Cecilia McIntosh) was a fortress down back, as usual,” Barba said.

“But playing quality sides obviously makes us better and when we come up against them, we just need to make sure our minds are in it and that we learn from today’s game.”

Embracing the physicality

It was clear from the first bounce that both sides were going to be physical.
Nanscawen and Prespakis led from the front with 25 tackles between them, while Barba showed her strength at contests to overpower her opponents.

Despite the loss, Barba was impressed with her team’s ability to push the undefeated Pies and continue to compete when behind on the scoreboard.

“We just need to make sure we execute things well and that we don’t step back from our style of footy,” she said.

“I think we played four quarters of effort. We kept our intensity up and didn’t let that drop.

“We expected it to be physical and we hit as hard as they hit, so we will recover well and head into next week.”

Preliminary final bound

The Bombers will now turn their attention to a home preliminary final at Windy Hill against Geelong.

Barba believes the Bombers will use the next week to reset after their semi-final loss to the Pies, and aim to regain their dominant style of play that helped them win over Casey in last week’s elimination final.

The VFLW Bombers will line up against Geelong in a preliminary final next week. (Photo: AFL Photos)

“I think we just need to focus on not going away from our way of playing. I think today we went back to our old ways,” she said.

“We just need to have a team-first mentality and if we stick to that, then I think we can get the job done next week.”

Essendon will host Geelong in a preliminary final at Windy Hill next weekend, with match details to be confirmed in the coming days.

COLLINGWOOD 0.4 1.4 2.6 2.6 (18)
ESSENDON 0.3 0.4 1.4 1.5 (11)

Goals: Davies
Best: Nanscawen, Prespakis, Ashley-Cooper, Ahrens, Svarc, Friswell

VFLW Bombers beaten, but advance to prelim

Essendon falls to the undefeated Collingwood in its VFLW semi-final, but advances to the preliminary finals.

www.essendonfc.com.au

 

[Lore]

Dammit

 

[Albertross]

Dammit

Shame. Hopefully the lockdown is a short one so there can be a result for the teams still involved.

 

[ghostdog]

Lore, when we enter the AFLW, are we in line for the same kind of draft concessions that were given to GC and GWS? Not sure how they could do something like that if a couple of other clubs also enter the comp.

Also, are we a show against Geelong?

 

[Lore]

Lore, when we enter the AFLW, are we in line for the same kind of draft concessions that were given to GC and GWS? Not sure how they could do something like that if a couple of other clubs also enter the comp.

Also, are we a show against Geelong?

I expect we’ll have the same kind of draft concessions as other teams that have entered the AFLW after the inaugural season, but nothing has been announced yet. They started with 8 teams and have since added another 6 over 2 years (2 then 4) so they’ve dealt with it before- we’ll have two more entering in 2022 and the last two clubs in 2023 so there’s a blueprint there. The whole system is a bit different to AFL so it’s not directly comparable to GC and GWS getting licenses in the men’s league though.

Not sure how we’ll go against Geelong. We’ve had some good wins this year and we were the form team in the comp until the AFLW players re-joined their teams and remembered the structures and strategies to play in those teams.

Geelong have dropped a couple in a row after finishing second on the ladder so they’ll be a bit desperate not to go out in straight sets I guess. But no more hungry than we are.

My main hope now is that we get to play them at all it’d be awful if it was all cancelled and the winner concluded on percentage or something. How’s that for your first finals series and you get a declared result instead of being able to play it out?

It’s only postponed atm so hopefully goes ahead when possible.

 

[ghostdog]

I expect we’ll have the same kind of draft concessions as other teams that have entered the AFLW after the inaugural season, but nothing has been announced yet. They started with 8 teams and have since added another 6 over 2 years (2 then 4) so they’ve dealt with it before- we’ll have two more entering in 2022 and the last two clubs in 2023 so there’s a blueprint there. The whole system is a bit different to AFL so it’s not directly comparable to GC and GWS getting licenses in the men’s league though.

Not sure how we’ll go against Geelong. We’ve had some good wins this year and we were the form team in the comp until the AFLW players re-joined their teams and remembered the structures and strategies to play in those teams.

Geelong have dropped a couple in a row after finishing second on the ladder so they’ll be a bit desperate not to go out in straight sets I guess. But no more hungry than we are.

My main hope now is that we get to play them at all it’d be awful if it was all cancelled and the winner concluded on percentage or something. How’s that for your first finals series and you get a declared result instead of being able to play it out?

It’s only postponed atm so hopefully goes ahead when possible.

Getting in at the back end of the comp and with other teams in 22 and 23 makes it seem like it will be a shallow talent pool. Hopefully being able to play/train (?) with some of the AFLW women helped to raise the standard.

Didn't realise the game had been postponed until this morning when I started looking around for a start time. First finals campaign decided on percentages would be a true * year. What a crappy way to start.

 

[Lore]

Getting in at the back end of the comp and with other teams in 22 and 23 makes it seem like it will be a shallow talent pool. Hopefully being able to play/train (?) with some of the AFLW women helped to raise the standard.

I’m not an expert on the existing AFLW but from what I understand the expansion teams have in the past had the opportunity to sign players from other teams, most of whom are out of contract every year anyway, before the signing season starts. Then, depending on how many you sign and I suppose some sort of formula, you get assigned priority picks in the draft.

So for example North and Geelong entered in the same year. North signed heaps of players and got picks at the end of each round, while Geelong didn’t so they got the first two picks of the entire draft (and some other bits) instead.

They’re also pretty liberal with their priority picks, they handed out about a dozen this year to 4 clubs, including I think 4 in the first round from memory?

There are also some players out there that really wanted to play for Essendon and either sat out until we get a license (and play VFLW in the mean time) or are playing for other AFLW teams now but will come across when we do get in.

The Prespakis sisters for one example - Maddie plays for Carlton and Georgie is draft age this year and has been playing for our VFLW team. She will end up at another club too, but probably they both come back to us when we get a team.

Player movement is also vastly easier in the AFLW given that it’s a part time league so there’s a lot of flexibility. So we’ll have opportunities, I’m not worried that we’d field a VFL team at AFL level or something.

 

[eth-dog]

I’m not an expert on the existing AFLW but from what I understand the expansion teams have in the past had the opportunity to sign players from other teams, most of whom are out of contract every year anyway, before the signing season starts. Then, depending on how many you sign and I suppose some sort of formula, you get assigned priority picks in the draft.

So for example North and Geelong entered in the same year. North signed heaps of players and got picks at the end of each round, while Geelong didn’t so they got the first two picks of the entire draft (and some other bits) instead.

They’re also pretty liberal with their priority picks, they handed out about a dozen this year to 4 clubs, including I think 4 in the first round from memory?

There are also some players out there that really wanted to play for Essendon and either sat out until we get a license (and play VFLW in the mean time) or are playing for other AFLW teams now but will come across when we do get in.

The Prespakis sisters for one example - Maddie plays for Carlton and Georgie is draft age this year and has been playing for our VFLW team. She will end up at another club too, but probably they both come back to us when we get a team.

Player movement is also vastly easier in the AFLW given that it’s a part time league so there’s a lot of flexibility. So we’ll have opportunities, I’m not worried that we’d field a VFL team at AFL level or something.

I'd be surprised if Ruby Svarc didn't come back and play for us as well