AFLW list management 2023

[Ruck'n'Roll]

And now confirmed Morphett makes it long-term in the red and white
Good move both on and off field. Very very happy.

[Mel_C]

Ally Morphett to sign a four year deal with the Swans. Phew!

So happy about this ????. We are building something special!

[liz]

OMG. I am so happy to read that. I just did a little jig around the lounge.

[Kafka's Ghost]

So happy about this [emoji3]. We are building something special!

Ditto; this is great news!!


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Ruck'n'Roll]

So we have Morph for 4 seasons, and Chloe Molloy, Cynthia Hamilton, Lucy McEvoy, Montana Ham and Sofia Hurley are on "long-term deals."

Hopefully other youngsters like Laura Gardner, Brenna Tarrant and Ella Heads are also safe.

[andreww1]

Have there been any retirements or delistings announced yet?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[aardvark]

Sydney Swans make five list changes

[Ruck'n'Roll]

Beesley had a terrible run, doing 2 ACL's and an MCL.

No real surprises.

In terms of numbers that's 5 out. Presumably Bullas comes back on to the list if she's recovered from her ACL, and Holly Cooper has beeen added.
So I think that only leaves 2 spots (I believe our new team expanded list drops by 1 from this season to the next) - but I may be wrong and the AFL may simply change their mnd.

Kate Reynolds' delisting means one of those will definitely need to be a second ruck. Morphett is coming back from a busted wrist and neither Lexi Hamilton nor Bella Smith is a viable first ruck option.
All Australian Ally (or AAA for short) casts a considerable shadow, and if she's fit has the ruck posi locked up. So whoever we get, they'll need to be OK with being the second fiddle and playing only rarely.

[Ruck'n'Roll]

Trade week (and DFA period) has started, will we bring someone in before the draft in 10 days time?

[Ruck'n'Roll]

We've picked up Kiara Hillier from the Lions. For a fourth round pick.
It's not as if we'd use that pick.
She's not exactly tall is she, but very welcome.
I think that leaves us with only 1 slot in the roster for the draft - which surely can't be correct?

[liz]

Yay! We've traded for someone.

Swans welcome Kiara Hillier

The Swans article isn't especially informative. Doesn't, for example, provide her height or anything about likely position. But I have found this profile from the wonderful resource that is RookieMeCentral.

Rising star Hillier has sights on top level - Aussie Rules Rookie Me Central

So she's tall (ish) and likely to play at one end of the ground or the other (rather than through the midfield).

So how tall is 173cm in the context of women's AFL? Answer: exactly the same height as Brenna Tarrant. So,, notwithstanding that Tarrant plays taller than her height, it sounds like Hillier might be more of a "third tall" or even rebounding defender, or maybe a mid-sized forward, than the key position player we so badly need. Still, she's a welcome addition to the squad, coming from a very strong programme and still very young.

[Ruck'n'Roll]

the key position player we so badly need.

Ella H is only 20, do you not see her playing in a key down back?

[Aaron]

According to the Lion's website (https://www.lions.com.au/players/afl.../kiara-hillier ). Kiara Hillier is listed as a MEDIUM DEFENDER and she was, "another Sunshine Coast local, drafted to Brisbane at Pick No. 78 in the 2022 NAB AFLW Draft. A reliable rebounding-defender with plenty of versatility, the Lions Academy product will be one to keep an eye on throughout the pre-season as she works towards her AFLW debut."

[liz]

Ella H is only 20, do you not see her playing in a key down back?

At 175cm, I don't see her as really a key back either. That's essentially the same height as Tarrant and Hillier. Like Tarrant, she is good overhead for her height, but neither is really equipped to play on the taller forwards.

Mitchell, at 183cm, is the best prospect we have in that role and she had a pretty good debut season. But I think we could do with at least one more around that height. I don't think we're going to get that during this off-season so I daresay, for 2024, we'll continue to rely on the likes of Tarrant and Heads "playing tall" and hope for continued improvement from Mitchell.

[Ruck'n'Roll]

I’ve been diligently trying to get my head around height (and it’s context) in the AFLW Liz.

The average height of our entire squad is 170cm’s. And Alice Mitchell at 183cm is the second tallest player on our roster, and resiliance personified Mitchell's story of resilience, presented by QBE (Go Namoi girl). And that height profile does not appear to be just a Swans thing.

183cm’s seems to be at the upper end of key position players height-wise. The tallest player in the 2023 All Australian backline was only 178cm (Chelsea Biddell), the second tallest 174cm (former Syndeysider Eilish Sheerin).

So if Ella had been selected in the All Australian side, at 175cm's she’d have been the 2nd tallest defender in it.

I don’t know whether she will make a Key Defender, I still think I’m a very inexperienced AFLW watcher, and who knows what the brains trust at the club have planned for her - but there have been games where she took so many marks she must have thought it was raining footballs.

More generally, the tallest player in the entire 2023 AFLW AA team is 188cm’s (Hi AAA, All Australian Ally) – the second tallest was 183cm’s (Zanker). So maybe cm’s in ALFW are bigger than cm’s in AFL?
In which case what to make of Charlie Rowbottom 180cm - the AFLW's answer to Partrick Cripps?