Yvonne Bonner’s premiership dream ended in agony this morning when the Adelaide Crows lost their AFLW preliminary final away to the North Melbourne Kangaroos 32-31 at Ikon Park in Melbourne.
The Kangaroos are through to their maiden Grand Final against the Brisbane Lions next week, but for minor premiers, Adelaide, the pain of defeat could linger into the off-season and beyond.
Anne Hatchard’s stunning pack mark and goal reduced Adelaide’s deficit to just a solitary point with around 2 minutes and 30 seconds left on the clock, but the Kangaroos somehow held on to become the first team outside of Adelaide, Brisbane, and Melbourne to contest the season decider.
Donegal forward Bonner, who started on the interchange bench, worked tirelessly for a match tally of 8 disposals (5 kicks & 3 handballs), 5 marks, and 5 tackles.
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Niamh Kelly finished the four quarters with 22 disposals (15 kicks & 7 handballs), 9 marks, and 3 tackles. The Mayo midfielder also gained 466 metres, which was second only to teammate Chelsea Biddell.
Former Cork All-Star collected 6 disposals (5 kicks & 1 handball), 1 mark, and 1 tackle in the North Melbourne defence.
“A few weeks ago [it was said] we couldn’t beat the big three, and now we’ve knocked over two of them – and we’ve got one to go in the grand final (Brisbane),” North Melbourne coach Crocker said.
“We probably didn’t play our best today, but we still found a way to win; a really gritty win full of character, and I think in finals football that prepares you really well for the big dance (Grand Final).”
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On Saturday, the Brisbane Lions reached their fifth Grand Final in eight seasons when they defeated Geelong 38-34 at their Brighton Homes Arena home.
Sydney-born Tipperary superstar Orla O’Dwyer, the standout Irish woman in AFLW, was named as one of the Lions best players. In 2021 O’Dwyer won an AFLW Premiership, and last year became the only Irish player in AFLW history to have been anointed as an All-Australian (team of the year) player.
O’Dwyer collected 21 disposals (15 kicks & 6 handballs), 3 marks, and 4 tackles in Brisbane’s forward line.
She also booted a trademark second-quarter goal when she out-sprinted the Geelong defence to finish with aplomb. In additiona, O’Dwyer booted a behind and gained 560 metres, comfortably more than any other player on the park.
A consistent big game player, O’Dwyer, underlined her resilience when she was taken off following a fourth quarter collision, but returned to see out the game.
Dubliner Jennifer Dunne, a three-time All-Ireland winner, notched 6 disposals (4 kicks & 2 handballs), and 3 marks.
The one negative for Brisbane was the loss of star forward Dakota Davison, who was forced off the field in the third term with a potentially serious knee injury. Her loss will be keenly felt in the Grand Final, but no decisions will be made about her availability until the results of a scan are determined early next week.
The Geelong Cats, who produced their best ever season in the AFLW to reach the final four, had three Irish players in their ranks: Tipperary duo Anna Rose Kennedy & Aishling Moloney and Mayo’s Rachel Kearns.
The former had the unenviable task of making her AFLW debut against Brisbane, and understandably struggled to impact the contest, with two tackles in defence her only touches of the Sherrin, after coming off the interchange bench
Aishling Moloney collected 9 disposals (8 kicks & 1 handball), 2 marks, and 2 tackles. The tall forward also booted gutsy fourth- quarter goal when she scooped the ball low off the ground to finish from close range and temporarily put Geelong two points ahead with just under 12 minutes remaining.
Mayo’s 2019 Ladies All-Star Rachel Kearns chipped in with 10 disposals (8 kicks & 2 handballs), 1 mark, and 2 tackles for the plucky Cats.
North Melbourne, who finished higher than Brisbane on the AFLW regular season ladder will host the Grand Final at Melbourne’s Ikon Park at 3:30am Northern Ireland time next Sunday morning.