AFLW ROUND 3 GAME ANALYSIS PART 1/2

No surprise results this week but 4 games decided by 4, 7, 6 and 5 points is a solid round of football.

Roos - score was close early but off the back off the Dogs playing very defensive footy and once it opened up then it was all over  

Dogs - might be the best mid-table team but just don't have the firepower to worry the top end

Crows - a good showing but scored 6 goals in 1qt and 3 for the rest so if they don't get great momentum can they score consistently enough?

Eagles - better this week but 2nd year blues under Daisy and can't finals from here 

Swans - low on woman-power but just did enough

Saints - 8 behinds before scoring their only goal and only 23 inside 50's shows their offensive issues

Giants - in good form and have a real opportunity against a potentially depleted Brisbane this week at home

Power - still up and down with the new game style but should keep improving week by week with it

Dees - have jumped Carlton as the clear number 2 after this demolition job on Brisbane

Lions - may have gone to the contested/surge well 1 too many seasons and with Stac probably gone at season's end I'd like to see what the next plan is as they can't maintain possession being equal last for that stat alongside Collingwood at just 37% time in possession (North #1 at 46% and Essendon 8th at 42% for reference)

Today we look at:

• Bogue Out the Back...Again!
• Port Forward Press Defense
• Mowbray Loose
• Melbourne 666 Connection
• Suns Outnumber Advantage

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AFLW ROUND 2 GAME ANALYSIS PART 2/2

Part 2 of round 2 today and we cover of the teams involved:

Dees - look to be the number 2 contender so book in round 7 men's Grand Final eve at Ikon Park

GWS - a big let-down after a solid start with a winnable home game this week to stay in touch

Blues - could also be a number 2 contender with a North Melbourne face-off in round 5

Crows - might have the toughest draw of the season where they play all of the current top 12 except the Bulldogs and 1 game against the current bottom 6 - sheesh

Power - dominated the 1st half v Hawks but out pressured in the 2nd half

Hawks - out pressured by Port in the 1st but dominated the 2nd half

Today we look at:

• Melbourne Fat Side Line
• Dees Numbers
• Jones Leaves Player
• Hawks Repeat Inside 50
• No Port Ruck
• Sholtz Ball Watching
• Port Numbers
• Power Fat Side Line
• No Port Contest

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AFLW ROUND 2 GAME ANALYSIS PART 1/2

Round 2 of AFLW is done and there's already a 3 -pronged ladder with those on 2 wins, 1 win and 0 wins.

I think the top 8 teams are probably set apart from Geelong for Gold Coast or Bulldogs as of the completion of round 2.

At a quick glance there's probably only 15 or so games with genuine top 8 implications for the rest of the season with most of those revolving around the likes of the Bulldogs, Suns, Power and Geelong who are still unknowns at this point.

Teams covered in this post:

Dogs - I think they'll beat who they should beat but can they beat all or split the teams around them and pinch an extra one?

Tigers - Looked great against poor Collingwood defense last week but dropped right back against a solid unit in the Bulldogs this week (43v32 i50's, 70v43 marks)

Eagles - A concern at the moment and far too skinny on offense and getting beaten on the outside (-8 contested possession but -40 uncontested possession_

Suns - Showed what might be very soon but can replicate something similar in a tough test against the Cats this week?

Cats - I suspected they weren't as bad as round 1 suggested but a 158pt turnaround shows the gap between their best and their worst which is a definite watch

Saints = worst offense and worst defense so where do you start?

Lions - scoreboard looked close but it really wasn't (-94 possessions, -9 inside 50's, -9 at clearance, -62 uncontested possession, -10 marks + goaless 1st half)

Roos - ditto but reverse stats!

Swans - have upped the tackling pressure dramatically rating 1st at 75.5/game v a league average of 60.5

Bombers - have a crack but when Prespakis has to kick out (6 or 7) and get your inside 50's (4) then it's going to be a long year

Pies - had a defensive identity last year which seems to have dropped off which only exposes their lack of offense even more

Dockers - trying to possess a lot more but a major work in progress and will get a better indication of where they're at after this weekend

Today we look at:

• Richmond Defensive Formation
• Dogs Forward 50 Stoppage Goal
• Gold Coast Forwards Cohesion
• Saints No Length
• Geelong at Center Bounce
• Brisbane Unorganised Defense
• Perfect High Half Forward Run
• Freo Cramping Useable Space
• Collingwood Missed Kick Implications
• Collingwood Forward Press Defense

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COLLINGWOOD/BRISBANE + MELBOURNE/WESTERN BULLDOGS GAME ANALYSIS

Thanks to the most of the wild card positions being all sewn up prior, it left us with a very uninspiring round 24 with results pretty much going the way of who most people would have thought would win.

With the Sydney disaster I'm going with this from here on out:

WC - WB/Coll x Coll + Melb/Car x Carl

FW1 - Fre/Haw x Freo + Gee/Car x Gee + Syd/Bris x Bris + Ade/Coll x Ade

FW2 - Haw/Gee x Gee + Syd/Ade x Syd

FW3 - Fre/Syd x Fre + Bris/Gee x Bris

FW4 - Fre/Bris x Bris

Lock that in!

Today we look at:

• Nick Diacos the Final Link in the Chain
• Berry Kick
• Brisbane Transition Offense
• Brisbane at Center Bounce x 2
• Melbourne at Center Bounce x 3

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ROUND 1 AFLW GAME ANALYSIS

AFLW round 1 for season 11 is in the books and here's what we found out about each team.

Saints - still middle of the pack and tried to be more dynamic offensively but a major work in progress

Blues - I've got them as 3rd at the moment because they play very similar to North Melbourne, but still not as good as them 

Melbourne - still probably the 2nd best team in it as they throw something different at the Roos

Hawks - backline will be an issue all year losing 3 our of their 5 starters from there from last season

North - are they even better?

Geelong - talent just doesn't match up with results but have a little bit of time with a new coach at the helm

Richmond - far more dynamic on offense than last year and a few positional changes worked very well

Pies - don't have the doeth to cover for injuries they already have - offense still a major issue

Suns - so young all over the ground but 9 shots to 10 in a 26pt loss

Bulldogs - could be anywhere finish anywhere this season - consistency will be what decides their season

Bombers - could score when they went forward but getting it there is a major issue

Lions - hunted the ball and player at an elite level but can I let you know after this week?

Adeliade - lost experience and replaced with youth but you can't have too many 2nd half fade outs in a 12 game season

Sydney - their best away win since their AFLW inception their time and showed real grit with 74 tackles and a 5.3 to 1.4 2nd half

Freo - need find a way to penetrate when in possession and to give themselves a chance to score

Port - an altered game style that still needs work but has top talent in all areas of the ground but possibly not the depth 

GWS - not sure they've ever had game where the goaled in every quarter? OK i just checked, it isn't but they have only managed it in 12 out of their 89 games and only 1/season the last 2 season's so it's been a battle

WC - possibly 2nd-year-blues on the horizon but again they're all so young but you don't waste a year either

Today we look at:

• Gold Coast Kick Out Defense
• Sydney at Center Bounce x 2
• Port Adeliade Outnumber Fail x 2
• West Coast Forward 50 Stoppage Goal

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BRISBANE v GOLD COAST GAME ANALYSIS

Brisbane took care of business against an again disappointing Gold Coast and barely looked to have got out of 3rd gear to do so.

With Swans completely losing the plot there's a more-open lane for the Lions for 3 on the trot, even if they do have to face Freo in Perth in the 1st week of the finals.

The Suns have clearly had a disastrous year but I expect them to bounce next season as the talent is just too deep up there, they've cut their age demo by a fair margin from last year, they'll get a bottom 6 draw and players who thought they were going well have had a much-needed kick in the backside but Dimma also needs to adjust his tactics to what they have, not what he wants them to be.

Today we look at:

• Lions Creating Corridor
• Brisbane Creating Space with Length
• Gold Coast Defense Fail
• Brisbane on Kick Out x 3

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NORTH MELBOURNE v GEELONG AFLW GAME ANALYSIS

As good as Melbourne were Thursday night for 2 quarters of footy, North Melbourne pretty much doubled that for a 73pt win and notching up 100pts in game 1 of the season (only 4 league-wide last season - Syd/Bris in round 2, Port/Nth round 3).

It might happen but I'm not really seeing anyone beating them again this year unless there is some dramatic injury bug goes through the entire joint - coaches included! 

Across all teams in round 1 they were equal 1st for total disposals (310), equal 3rd for inside 50's (46), equal 1st for disposal efficiency (70%), 1st for goal efficiency (34%), 2nd for uncontested possessions (176), equal 2nd for marks (68) and equal 5th for tackles (61).

All this against a Geelong team who already have an above average list and just brought in premiership coach Mick Stinear from the Dees.

If you're into coaching of any age and gender, then North Melbourne AFLW games are a must-watch as it's footy at it's absolute finest.

In 2 parts today we look at:

• North Melbourne Center Bounce Clearance
• Geelong Forward Handball
• North Creating and Maintaining the Outnumber Advantage
• Geelong at Contest
• Clean v Messy Ball Handling + Geelong Ball Watching
• Roos Creating Space by Lengthening
• North Forward 50 Stoppage Formation 
• Roos Wing Running Pattern
• Geelong at Center Bounce Clearance
• North Melbourne Kick Out Defense Formation
• Roos Trade Up Defending

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HAWTHORN v MELBOURNE GAME ANALYSIS

Last night saw a very high-quality game between the Hawks and Dees.

The Dees got away to a flyer that was ultimately the margin by the end of the game but the Hawks showed some great chops to get back into thew game and have it on a knife's edge at 3/4 time.

Personally, I thought the Hawks defense would struggle with missing key defenders in Everist and Eardley but with the Melbourne ruck going down and forcing Gillard from defense and then Harris from attack into 1st ruck duties, the temporary instability for the Dees allowed the Hawks to dominate inside forward 50 through Dupuy/McDonagh (4 goals 2 and 11 marks between them) and then Richardson intercepting at will (11).

In the end the Dees were the better team and deserved the win and look like they might be able to push North Melbourne to the end as per the Prelim last season.

Today we look at:

• Hawks Going Too Slow Inside Forward 50 x 2
• Hawks Messing Up the Number Advantage x 2
• Dees Mised Handball
• Poor Hawks Crumbing Formation
• Hore Leaks Out
• McNamara Nails Space Creation

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BRIS/HAW + SYD/PA + WC/COLL GAME ANALYSIS

The Lions are at it again with the bad loss 1 week turning into a ridiculous win the next week with a mauling of the Hawks who still seem midfielders or 2 short of the upper-tier teams but have a better defense and forward line then most at the same time so are a tricky proposition.

The Swans poured on 10 goals in the final quarter against the Power without their starting midfield so take out of that what you will.

The Eagles again ran close but couldn't close against the Pies who were well down on manpower so did very well to win this one (I picked the Eagles!!)

Today we look at:

• Brisbane on Kick Out
• Lloyd Wing Run
• Transition Offense v Transition Defense
• Serong Wing Run
• Sydney Compact to Expansion
• Carlton Looking Like Collingwood
• Collingwood at Center Bounce 

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ST KILDA v CARLTON AFLW GAME ANALYSIS

AFLW is back and first up we had the Saints and Blues.

The Blues have recruited well on top of an already very good list and have continued with their North Melbourne-inspired and clean handballing and marking game and seem the biggest threat to the Roos with other usually contending teams losing vital players over the off-season. 

The Saints seem once again stuck in the middle of the pack and were already stuck in the middle of which mode they wanted to play with throughout this game but had more success with quicker style in the 2nd half which I think they should stick with if it continues to work for them.

Today we look at:

• My Yearly "We Need 18/Team" Rant
• The Blues Mess Up a 2v1 Advantage
• St Kilda in Possession
• Saints Going Too Slow
• Saints Mess Up Their Outnumber Advantage
• St Kilda at Center Bounce x 2
• Saints Ball Stopping

 

AUSTRALIA v IRELAND WOMEN'S GAME ANALYSIS

It's always good to see the AFLW on its way back and this International Game seemed like a great idea on paper at least.

The game was solid but we definitely saw the specific strengths of each team and in Ireland's case, it's weakness, that being the ruck situation.

Playing on aground a measly 130m long means 1 tap and a 40m kick puts you just 25m out from goal which does lend itself to potentially high scoring but in the end, it makes it a clearance game and with the ruck taps 53 - 14 and thus clearances 35 - 21, both in Australia's favor, the Irish were always up against it.

With their strengths bei9ng speed and endurance, I'd like to see next year's game on a traditionally sized ground to allow them to play to their strengths and see what happens scoreboard-wise.

In this quick video we look at 2 center bounce clearances + a forward 50 entry from Australia showing elite leading patterns from numerous forwards.

FREO/WB + STK/SYD + CAR/BRI GAME ANALYSIS

A mixed bag today from 3 different games where the Dogs defended but in the end were overwhelmed by Freo, the Saints again played 3 great quarters of footy before losing to the Swans and the Blues unexpectedly took the Lions to the cleaners.

Today we look at:

• Bulldogs Us Their Numbers
• Dogs Missed Handball
• Sydney Run from Defensive 50
• Brisbane Kick Out
• Brisbane Creating Space

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COLLINGWOOD v GEELONG GAME ANALYSIS

Unfortunately for the Pies, injuries to key players just keeps adding up with Perryman, Lipinski and Howe being added to the likes of Moore, Maynard, Elliott and Steene and the closest returnee from that list is stated as 2 - 3 weeks away and you can make a case that West Coast beat them this week although my ladder predictor would still have them finish 10th.

The Cats will be an enigma come finals time as they haven't been convincing but have the easiest run home v Ess, NM and Richmond but is beating those teams going to run into premiership-winning form?

Today we look at:

• Collingwood Going Corridor
• Collingwood Transition Offense
• Collingwood at Center Bounce
• Geelong Creating/Utilising the Outnumber Advantage

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GWS v SYDNEY + BRISBANE v PORT ADELAIDE GAME ANALYIS

After some patchy Sydney form and the inconsistencies of GWS, I thought we'd win this one but still needed some convincing and that came from the Giants playing non-contact for the first quarter and a half which looks good for the Swans, but with a soft underbelly to our game and even softer draw remaining, these types of games are not what we need to get ready for finals.

Port still seem to be the greatest 15th team of allllllllll-tiiiiiiiiiiiiiime by leading both Freo and Brisbane for most of the 1st half being run over on their way to the 1st or 2nd best player in the draft next year with the probable loss of Butters - there's enough there and the coaching is excellent to suggest it won't take long for them to bounce with a few shrewd list moves.  

Today we look at:

• GWS Kick Out
• Sydney Forward 50 Stoppage Goal
• The Rowbottomiser
• Brisbane Patience to Get Corridor

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MELBOURNE v GEELONG GAME ANALYSIS

Not 2 teams I usually get around to do many clips on but with 3rds finished for the year I have Friday nights back to watch that game properly so I did.

I actually picked the Dees and thought their chaos game could throw the minorly-injured Cats off just enough to win and they very well could have if their handball game wasn't so poor but we can also put that down to the Cats pressure defense.

The Demons won the total handballs 159 - 148 yet badly lost the meters gained by handball stat 382m - 662m which upset the forward surge style of the Dees and allowed the Cats defense to set before they could enter.

Oh and Geelong getting 101 of their 117pts from turnover didn't really help either!

Today we have 6 clips which consists of 5 center bounce clearance clips and then 1 looking at the wing match up between Dempsey and Langford who both love getting forward and being a marking option. 

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ADELAIDE v COLLINGWOOD GAME ANALYSIS

The Crows' up and down season continues as the does the Pies rise up the ladder.

The Pies record at Adeliade Oval is really exceptional considering how good Adeliade and Port have both been in recent seasons and they did it again Thursday night, albeit with a very different team than most of those past wins in regards to quality and experience. 

When the Crows get the game right on their terms they're hard to beat but without a run and gun game they're simply to 1-dimensional and it will be very interesting times if they fail to win a final again this year.

Today we look at:

• Adelaide Forward Press Defense
• McCreery Wing Run
• Adelaide Mark and Play On
• Howe Forward 50 Mark
• Crisp Run
• Membrey Forward 50 Mark

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WEST COAST v BRISBANE GAME ANALYSIS

In the Brisbane Game Style package I made up based on Brisbane's play from the 2025 season, 1 of the games I took a deep dive in was against the Eagles back in round 3 where the at the Gabba, the Eagles got off to a flyer with a 5.2 to 1.1 scoreline at quarter time before the Lions were able to reel them in to finish up winners by 19pts.

This game was eerily similar with the Eagles getting out to a 5.2 to 2.5 lead at quarter time to again be ran over by the Lions on the way to a 24pt loss.

The Lions don't really get up much for these lower games but the Eagles pressure is definitely something to be aware of and once those young bodies get stronger and those tackles don't get broken, it'll be very hard to play against them.

Today we look at the Lions getting length in 3 separate clips, something they do better than anyone else in the league + a West Coast forward 50 entry.

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COLLINGWOOD v CARLTON GAME ANALYSIS

I went along to this one live Saturday night and the natives for both teams were certainly out and about.

The Pies have been playing a game much closer to their 2022-24 style after I assume deliberately playing a very much slower, boundary-biased version early in the season with an ageing list. 

The Blues have come back to the pack after that ridiculous run post-Fraser appointment and now are probably placed where they should be at 12th placed.

In a quick video today we look at:

• Collingwood Offense Slow Play
• Pies Handball Receive from a Mark
• Carlton Handball Transition

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SYDNEY v ADELIADE GAME ANALYSIS

The Swans are in a downturn at the moment and are in an iffy spot really.

We have very winnable games on the way home so "shouldn't" lose another game which means we finish 2nd and have 2 home finals where we just lost our 1st home game this season.

The other side of that is that we don't have great competition to really turn our season around against so even if we it looks like we might have improved, the competition we do it against might be the reason why rather than us literally improving.

Stats wise I'll be looking at our chains over at Wheelo's to see if that pushes back up as well our score sources.

The Crows seem back to their 2025 form but play a totally different gamer then everyone else which poses the question of can they continue to zig while everyone else zags?

They weren't able to last year when it really mattered so the jury is still out on them, like the Swans, until the real business end of the season.

Today we look at:

• Sydney Creating Corridor Space
• Swans Forward Press Defense
• Sydney Forward 50 Stoppage Goal
• Curnow Too Skinny

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NORTH MELBOURNE v COLLINGWOOD GAME ANALYSIS

I didn't find time to get this one up last week but it's just a quick look at North Melbourne falling for the same kick out strategy 10mins apart in the very same quarter, but one we've seen in these game analysis posts at least a dozen times!

I'll catch on this week's games by tonight/tomorrow and be back on schedule before we know it.