AFLW

[bloodspirit]

At this rate they'll be adding teams as fast as they can find the players to fill them!

Once we have our academy up and running for women and our new, bigger, 'state of the art' training facility we'll be a shoo in to get in the next tranche of teams I reckon!

[Mel_C]

I love how they are so far getting crowd numbers that match or better GW$'s H&A figures

One thing I didn't realise was that the matches are free. Amazingly Gill said they weren't going to start charging for entry.

Sent from my HTC_PN071 using Tapatalk

[aardvark]

Sydney Swans keen to join AFL Women's revolution

[bloodspirit]

I watched my first full game of AFLW this Saturday (on TV), Bulldogs-Demons. It was good to watch. With a longer viewing, the skills difference relative to the AFL was more conspicuous but still didn't detract too much from the spectacle. Cat Phillips was exciting to watch and Alyssa Mifsud had a breakout game. Found out why Daisy Pearce is considered the best in the game. The commentary was so-so. I have enjoyed hearing the commentary of current AFLW players (like Daisy Pearce) the most. Still, Peta Searle did add value and Sam Lane is good at interviewing the players - they seem to like her, perhaps because she evidently shares their excitement about the women's game going (semi) pro. Although the game is much shorter, it feels ok relative to where the AFLW is at currently. I wonder if that will be revisited at some time in the future? With the trend of sports to abbreviate and speed up their games (T20, Rugby 7s, Tennis fast 4 etc.), possibly not. The big selling point remains the passion and pride of the players and the fans and the atmosphere created by good crowds in appropriately sized venues.

I am considering travelling (from Sydney) to watch the Granny, if it's in Melbourne. I wish they would give us some more info. If the Granny is Adelaide - Brissy, will they play it at the higher placing finalist's home ground? I won't go if I have to pay premium price airfares at the last minute. Looking forward to the day that we get our own team. I wonder if we'll have a new training facility in time? Very likely not if we're going to build it from scratch. I reckon once we do have our act together we are a great chance of being given a licence the next time they award additional licences. I think the AFL will be keen to establish another team in the nation's biggest city, especially one aligned with the nation's most widely supported sports club. A sure-fire winer - no?

[Meg]

News re possible AFLW GF locations but won't be clear until minor premier is know. Adelaide Oval, Gabba, Metricon and Ikon Park all mentioned. Entry will be free however.

AFLW grand final: Gillon McLachlan confirms venues for decider

[bloodspirit]

Another impressive barrier AFLW is breaking through is homophobia. Erin Phillips, the AFLW's MVP and best on ground in the grand final i.e. the women's game's hottest property at the minute, is able to openly acknowledge her wife, Tracy Gahan, and talk about their baby twins: No Cookies | The Advertiser. All her family - wife, parents and maybe kids too - were in the stands for the AFLW granny. Why is it that after all this time there is still not one male AFL player who has ever come out? Clearly part of the reason is that male homosexuality is more threatening, to men in particular, but surely there is more to it? I don't know the answer but it's particularly sad that this is true even though Ian Roberts, a top rugby league player, came out over 20 years ago and led an anti-homophobia campaign in rugby league with other top players of the day. Still, even after Roberts' brave first step I haven't heard of many to follow, Gareth Thomas the Welsh rugby captain being one of the few. Still, I hope the example of Erin Phillips and other AFLW players can shine a light and lead the way for more men to follow, thereby making it more ok for men everywhere in society to be accepted irrespective of their sexuality.

I'm sorry to see that this thread has fallen into a 'dead zone' from the time it was moved out of the Swans forum. I confess I myself rarely look at any threads outside of the Swans forum. Perhaps this is something that can be reviewed when/as the site is being overhauled/renovated.

[Meg]

Agree with you bloodspirit that the openness of the women footballers about their sexuality has been refreshing. And the quite joyous way some media stories were written, such as the one you have posted about Erin, are really welcome. (And yes Erin and her partner's twin sons were at the GF. I saw a lovely photo of Erin with them after the match.)

Another example are Penny Cula-Reid (Collingwood) and Mia-Rae Clifford (Melbourne) who are a gay couple but playing for different teams.

First openly gay AFL player couple: "We're proud, and proud of each other"

[bloodspirit]

It's a cosy club on this thread. Hi Meg!

I feel like I'm hunkering down at a small table up the back of the bar to put my head together with a few other grizzled regulars over some ouzo, coffee and pistachios rather than amidst a throng in a market place at the Swans forum.

Now I had better say something AFLW related. I wonder if Erin will go the trifecta and pick up the Best and Fairest gong tonight: AFL Women?s best and fairest 2017, AFLW, Rising Star, All-Australian team | Fox Sports However, if it's the Brownlow equivalent, shouldn't it be 'Fairest and Best'? I like that formulation with the anachronistic emphasis on fairness and honour not just return-for-dollar. Personally, I would love to see Daisy win because (a) she deserves it; and (b) she additionally deserves it for the many years she has already been the best player before the AFLW came along and gave her the recognition she deserves. If she doesn't, I hope they name the trophy after her as soon as she stops playing.

[Meg]

Haha bloodspirit!

Thanks for link with background information for tonight's awards. I really liked the intro to the article, as below. I hate the WAGs aspect of the Brownlow night.

"THE AFLW?s answer to the Brownlow has arrived. And while it?s sure to be a night that honours the game?s best and fairest player, it will retain few other aspects of the men?s top gong........women won?t be accessories. They?ll be celebrated in the spotlight."

[Meg]

I watched quite a bit of the AFLW awards night last night and what a joyous, relaxed celebration it was. Erin Phillips (Adelaide) was the very deserving winner of the best and fairest award and Daisy Pearce (Melbourne) equally deserving as the chosen captain of the first women's all-Australian team.

I felt for the Brisbane women who went through the season undefeated (with one draw) but then lost the GF. However Adelaide Crows were very deserving winners. And there was something special about the inaugural premiership team being coached by a woman. And what an impressive woman at that - she seems to be an inspired coach.

" Bec Goddard, who won the prize post of first coach of Adelaide's first women's team is in so many ways a very modern coach. A new-wave thinker who sports thick-rimmed glasses, a cropped asymmetric hairdo, shocks of colour on her fingernails and hot-pink socks with her team uniform. Goddard plays piano, trumpet and guitar and this year will complete a degree in Persian language Farsi.

She also has an old-fashioned belief in the power of words and has drummed many mantras into her squad since it first assembled last November."

Love letters from an AFL coach

[dimelb]

Thanks for the comments Meg, and for the link.

I'm particularly interested in the "love letters" to the players; it occurred to me that this is something a woman might do, but a man would be rather unlikely to do. Which may be a pity, given the galvanising effect it seems to have had on the women.

[Meg]

AFLW

Don, I agree that the 'love letters' were very much a woman's touch. Possibly only another woman could intuitively recognise and understand the insecurities her players would be feeling. This comment from one player sums that up:

"I'm a person who, at times, probably doesn't have the best self-belief. That's something I've got to work on. But even if it's just for a couple of seconds I can read that (the coach's letter) and think: 'Well, if my coach can say these things about me and she's got trust in me then it's about time I had the trust myself and my ability.' "

[bloodspirit]

It is great to have a female-coached team win. It is fascinating to see the cultural differences that are emerging. Men's footy has a lot it can learn and gain from watching women's footy and its culture. Just as women's footy has no doubt learnt and benefitted enormously from the progress men's footy has delivered (and not just the mistakes!).

Thanks for the link to an absorbing article, Meg. The 'love letters' were a great initiative by Bec Goddard. I can totally see how they would be effective. I could possibly see a bloke doing something similar to 'love letters' but they probably wouldn't call them that (except ironically) nor sign them off with "love". Kirky maybe? He has talked about the importance of loving your team mates. Anyway, times are changing and emotions, tears and loving language are becoming more acceptable, even among blokes.

A couple of thoughts about the B&F Award and its coverage: I thought the photos of Erin Phillips kissing her wife were a bit gratuitous - I don't recall that same kind of focus on Danger's wife kissing him when he won the Brownlow. Then again I suppose it may be more newsworthy in Erin & Tracy's case, since it is a newer phenomenon. Also, as best I could tell, there didn't seem to be any (many?) male partners among the players' tables which seemed a bit strange since at least Erin's wife was present. Presumably it wouldn't be that only female partners were allowed. I might be wrong though because I just saw the glimpses of footage from afl.com.au's footy feed or something. Maybe it's just that the majority of players didn't bring any partner at all? Maybe you can elucidate, Meg, since you watched quite a bit?

There have been some great suggestions for the AFLW comp next year including not having it overlap with the men's season and giving it prominence ahead of the JLT series. However, one that I am less sold on is the suggestion that the games should not be free because it 'devalues' the women's game. I don't agree with this at all. I'd be curious what the players think. I think it is great to attract the best crowds possible and keeping the community spirit and this is what free admission does. While I agree at some stage admission will and should be charged it is normal business practice to have a period of 'loss leading' while you are building the business. I think improving the players' pay is more important than charging admission but the two don't have to be linked. Better crowds makes for a more attractive product which, I daresay, would be more marketable on TV, which is where the greater money is going to come from to start off with. It's also great to get more footy in that period which is otherwise a bit of a frustrating period waiting for the footy season to properly resume.

[Meg]

A couple of thoughts about the B&F Award and its coverage: I thought the photos of Erin Phillips kissing her wife were a bit gratuitous - I don't recall that same kind of focus on Danger's wife kissing him when he won the Brownlow. Then again I suppose it may be more newsworthy in Erin & Tracy's case, since it is a newer phenomenon. Also, as best I could tell, there didn't seem to be any (many?) male partners among the players' tables which seemed a bit strange since at least Erin's wife was present. Presumably it wouldn't be that only female partners were allowed. I might be wrong though because I just saw the glimpses of footage from afl.com.au's footy feed or something. Maybe it's just that the majority of players didn't bring any partner at all? Maybe you can elucidate, Meg, since you watched quite a bit?

The 'kiss your partner' immediately after the announcement of the Brownlow seems to be a mandatory part of the men's awards night so I like that the photo of Erin kissing her wife has been widely published. However I understand why you might wonder about the media's motives.

Erin gave an articulate, heart-felt speech in response to the award in which she thanked her family, her team mates, the AFL (particularly for bringing forward the timing of the comp. as, at age 30, she is nearing the end of her athletic career) and at the end an emotional, loving tribute to Tracy, her wife, which caused quite a few tears. Erin and Tracy have surely shown how out-of-touch Australia is on the issue of marriage equality.

In regard to partners at the function, there was a wonderful mixture: many players unaccompanied (or more accurately in the celebratory companionship of their team mates): players with their female partners, players with their male partners, Tayla Harris with both her parents; Ellie Blackburn with her mother; Chelsea Randall with her father; and Sarah Perkins with her brother.

And while a lot of the players 'glammed up' (and a couple wore tuxedos) I loved the fact that they still held themselves like athletes - sort of strode along in their gowns - none of that (to me) silly, pretentious pouting poses that seem to be obligatory from the Brownlow WAGs.

[bloodspirit]

It's also great to hear that the AFLW season may be expanded (not sure if this is just going to be by adding a top-4 finals series, which might mean only one extra week): Lethlean open to AFLW finals series introduction. However, I would still prefer to see this happen by starting the season earlier than seeing it cut across the men's season. Perhaps this isn't viable.

Another improvement will be expanding the clubs' lists. I certainly agree this should be the priority ahead of increasing the number of clubs in the comp. In future, expanding the number of clubs in the comp will be the same way to extend the season, as the number of H&A fixtures increases. So, I suppose, eventually, the men's and women's seasons are going to have to cut across each other. Maybe I just need to accept that.