“It will be the first time the Bombers have played finals since their inauguration in 2018, with the side finishing the home and away season on eight wins and two losses.”
I wish!
(Well, no. I like that we actually play all teams during the H&A, unlike certain other competitions.)
In another Tweet, Alex said we’d go all the way 
(He may be biased.)
by Alex Catalano (click here for other pieces by Alex)
Alana Barba (L) and Georgia Nanscawen (R) have been running the Bombers’ engine room all season. (Photo: VFL)
For the first time in its short existence, Essendon’s women’s team is playing finals.
It has been a steady improvement for the Bombers since entering the VFLW competition in 2018. They’ve gone from 13th, to ninth, and now to fifth in a maiden finals berth.
The path to get there hasn’t been an easy one for coach Brendan Major’s side.
Captain Georgia Nanscawen missed games throughout the middle of the season with a calf injury, though her return was celebrated with a massive 53-point win over Carlton.
That game was also the Bombers’ return to Windy Hill for the first time in over 18 months. They were previously playing their home games at the Hangar due to clashes with the cricket season.
They now head into finals missing star goalkicker Federica Frew, who hasn’t played since that game against Carlton. She had a day out, kicking three goals in one of her best performances for the season.
But after a huge win against Darebin to cap off the year, Nanscawen is confident in their form as the Bombers prime themselves to take on the Casey Demons, away from home.
“Going into the finals series to have a win and a game like that fills us with a lot of confidence,” she told The Inner Sanctum .
“We were obviously pretty happy with the performance, to have a pretty comprehensive win and to play the game on our terms in what were some pretty tough conditions with the mud and the rain on the weekend.”
Skipper Georgia Nanscawen found out just how muddy it can get at Bill Lawry Oval on Saturday. (Photo: Essendon VFLW/Twitter)
Sitting with a sizeable percentage gap behind the fourth placed Demons, the Bombers had a chance to catch them with a big enough win.
Everything almost went their way, Casey going down to the Western Bulldogs earlier in the day. The Demons inevitably held fourth spot, however, to earn themselves a home final.
This was only by 0.6 per cent, mind you!
“We actually didn’t think about [the percentage] too much,” Nanscawen said.
“We thought we had to win by about 100 to be in with a shot, so the fact that it was actually that close in the end, we were probably a bit unsuspecting.
“I think every game we go in [knowing] our defence has been pretty good all year. The last time we played [Darebin] as well we held them goalless.
“That’s an aim going into every week, regardless of the percentage. It was about playing the game on our terms, which we did.”
Essendon has been a side that has been to strike a fine balance between youth and experience all season long.
The addition of bullocking full-forward Mia-Rae Clifford in the pre-season has only bolstered the only strong group of seasoned AFLW talent.
Cecilia McIntosh, Lauren Ahrens, Ruby Svarc, and Nanscawen herself will all be counted on to bring their cool heads into the game under the intensity of finals.
“We probably have [relied on them] all year, to draw on the experience of those girls has been great,” Nanscawen said.
“Of course, going into a finals series, it’s really a new experience for all of us. I think we’ll be doing it as a group as we have done all year.
“Having that AFLW experience is always going to be pretty handy.
“‘Loz’ [Lauren Ahrens] has missed a couple of games, but played with us last week and was a bit of a rock down back. I think she adds a bit of extra height for us and some great marking and kicking ability.
“‘Rubes’ [Svarc] with her lightning speed is always super handy as well. They’re back in with us at the right time of the year, so we’re super excited to have them.”
Alana Barba is one of the players leading the youth movement at Essendon.
She was earmarked pre-season by the leadership as one to watch, playing more midfield minutes and finding a healthy rotation through the middle and the forward line.
Barba is only 19, but has already been overlooked in drafts before. This year, she’s proving that she can’t be ignored by AFLW sides again.
She’s averaging 16 disposals, seven tackles and a clearance per game, and has kicked 9.9 along the way.
Though the draft has been on her mind, Barba is looking at Saturday’s clash against Casey first and foremost.
“It has [entered my thoughts], but I’m focusing on the weekend,” Barba told The Inner Sanctum .
“My main focus at the moment is the Bombers, and I think I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it. Hopefully not next week! Hopefully we go far and I’ll think about that later on.”
Highly touted Calder Cannons prospect, and sister of Carlton’s Maddy, Georgie Prespakis, has made an impact in her short time in the red and black.
In just two games she’s averaging 17 disposals, eight tackles, four clearances and two and a half inside 50s.
With a slew of exciting young talent including hard inside midfielder Eloise Ashley-Cooper, crafty forwards Zali Friswell and Tara Slender, and excitement machine Grace Dicker, there’s a feeling around the young group coming into finals.
“I think the whole team is pretty excited,” Barba said.
“The vibes are up and about and the energy is the best it’s ever been. Everyone is just wrapped [sic] to be here and we just can’t wait.
“Our team culture is something I’ve never been a part of [before]. We pride ourselves on that a lot, and we’re a pretty close knit team.
“It just feels like home there, and I love playing alongside the girls.”
Forecast says Casey will be Casey-like: 9º and 30km/h to the right of screen.
Likely dry, though.
Video below has training footage (presumably from tonight, we know that was happening) and 11 players interviewed.
Original player Eleanor Cornish didn’t get to speak, but hey she’s there training (below) even if there is basically zero chance of her playing (Gillard was there and is not going out). Prespakis with the mids in one shot; I’m going to read lots into that. Friswell present and pushing for re-inclusion.
I think we are:
IN
Slender
Friswell
OUT
Dicker
Lennox
Minus a couple injuries (particularly Frew) that is pretty damn close to best possible.
I see their ruck is a 179cm 30yo recently delisted by Norf after playing 10 AFLW games this season (37 AFLW games played with them and Fark Carlton). Is more a KPP than a ruck: has never exceeded 10 hitouts in those AFLW games.
Played one game of VFLW and is therefore eligible. She didn’t get a hit-out in that game (ex-Bomber Winbanks was tops for Casey, and is on the emergency list).
More analysis on their team, and the changes made by both teams since we beat them 30-22 in round two, will come this evening.
I think this is a first: the VFL app has the specific links to YouTube for the Saturday VFLW finals. I’ve added it below, and to the first post.
We’ve made 9 changes since round two. Roughly paired up:
| OUT | IN | COMMENT |
|---|---|---|
| E. Mackay | R. Svarc | Neutral-negative |
| L. Caruso | E. Hosking | Neutral |
| F. Frew | G. Prespakis | Neutral |
| A. Quigley | T. Slender | Plus? |
| E. Gardner | L. Ahrens | Plus |
| F. Theodore | Z. Friswell | Plus |
| G. Dicker | E. Yassir | Plus |
| E. Cornish | S. Nalder | Plus |
| L. Stepnell | T. Gillard | Plus |
Here are the 10 Casey ins (with their number of games played this year). It include 9 AFLW or ex-AFLW players, 7 of whom played all or nearly all of the games this year.
It include just one U19 player (their ruck).
Very tall set of INs – 8 of them are 174+cm. We’re playing 5 total such players this game.
| In | AFLW | VFLW | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| C. Sherriff | 11 | 7 | 175cm defender |
| J. Parry | 11 | 5 | 176cm forward |
| S. Heath | 11 | 4 | 160cm defender |
| G. Colvin | 11 | 4 | 175cm defender (ex-netballer) |
| A. Bannan | 11 | 4 | 177cm forward (1 goal/game) |
| K. Gillespie-Jones | 10 | 1 | 179cm forward, was on the 2021 Norf AFLW list |
| B. Tarrant | 9 | 5 | 174cm defender |
| A. Brown | 0 | 8 | 179cm , was on the 2021 Saints AFLW list |
| E. Humphries | - | 8 | 165cm midfielder (ex-AFLW) |
| G. Matser | - | 3 | 186cm ruck from Gippsland Power |
Here’s their outs since the last time we met. It also has 7 at 185+cm – so the changes are presumably quality, not just quantity!
@hoffy and I are booing them for dropping Bridie.
| Out | AFLW | VFLW | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| B. Winbanks | - | 12 | 185cm ruck |
| C. Conroy | - | 10 | 182cm defender |
| I. Simmons | 0 | 9 | 184cm KPP |
| G. Buchan | - | 9 | 171cm midfielder |
| M. Caris | 0 | 7 | 190cm ruck (a millions tap to no advantage) |
| H. Thomas | - | 6 | 170cm forward |
| K. Thompson | - | 5 | 175cm forward |
| S. Topp | - | 4 | 179cm, ex-volleyballer |
| N. McEvoy | 3 | 4 | 176cm forward |
| B. Borchard | - | 4 | 160cm |
Alex Catalano has gone rogue!
Records:
Casey – 4th, 8-6, 155.96%
Essendon – 5th, 8-6, 155.95%
2021 H2H:
Round 2 – Casey Demons 3.4 (22) def. by Essendon 4.7 (31) @ Casey Fields
Last 5:
Casey – 2-3
Essendon – 2-3
It is only fitting that Casey and Essendon begin their respective maiden VFLW finals campaigns against each other, as they lock horns at Casey Fields on Saturday afternoon. This is the tightest matchup of the lot after 14 home-and-away rounds, with the two sides boasting equal 8-6 records and separated by just 0.1 per cent on the ladder. They are also both 2-3 across their last five outings, with their only previous meeting in 2021 seeing the Bombers salute to the tune of nine points at the same venue.
Plenty has changed since then, though, according to Demons midfielder Eliza West .
“[Essendon] was so physical and I think it surprised us and we weren’t ready for that level of physicality,” West said. “But now after playing for a little while we’ve obviously improved on that because we’ve had to focus on it, and I think coming into the game this week that’ll be a big point for us. We’ll go in ready to play hard and win the footy.”
Bombers skipper Georgia Nanscawen , who has enjoyed a stellar season in the engine room, says calling the matchup close is “pretty spot on.”
“Our matchup against them earlier in the year was a very close game,” Nanscawen said. “When you look at the ladder, I think there was 0.1 of a percent [difference] or something. You can’t get much closer than that so it should be a cracking game.”
While they are incredibly closely matched, there remains a key point of difference between these two adversaries. Essendon is the lone purely non-AFLW aligned team to feature among this year’s finalists, making for another landmark to be “proud” for Nanscawen and her standalone squad of Bombers.
“I’m really loving my time at the Bombers and for our first finals campaign as a club, it’s certainly special to be a part of,” she said. “To be the non-aligned club shows that we can match it with those aligned clubs and hopefully we can have a good finals series.
“We’ve come back refreshed after the break, we’ve had a really good couple of weeks and we’re feeling great so I think anything can happen on the weekend.”
While the Bombers may not be able to lean on its own group of currently senior-listed stars, its emerging crop of youngsters has plenty of fans and pundits alike eager to see how they fare. Having blazed her own trail through the NAB League pathway with Calder Cannons, Essendon forward Alana Barba is excited to see what the next generation can produce come finals time.
“It’s really exciting to see some of the prospects coming through,” Barba said. “A lot of them have done pretty well on their debuts, and going up against the bigger bodies they’ve held their ground and they’ve really come in strong. “It’s exciting to see where they go in the future, whether that’s at the Bombers or anywhere on an AFLW list, they’ll do well.
“I guess I try and take them under my wing a bit because I’ve come through the same pathway as them. But they hold their ground pretty well and they’re very keen as we all are, so it’ll be exciting to see how they go.”
Nanscawen also pointed towards an AFLW draft pick one candidate for her choice of a potential “difference maker”.
“We’ve got Georgie Prespakis who had a great game last week,” she said. “That was her second game for us and she’s improved across the two games already, so we’re pretty excited to see what she can do in a finals series.”
On the flip side, Casey will field up to 10 AFLW-listed players on Saturday and have been able to take plenty from the senior Melbourne side – including an exciting gameplan. Demon Ally Kirkwood says her side is excited for the opportunity to implement it throughout the finals campaign.
“I think the gamestyle we want to play is really exciting,” Kirkwood said. “It’s definitely something the Melbourne AFLW girls implemented and it worked for them through finals. “Unfortunately they didn’t make the grand final but I think we will. That’s what’s really exciting for us; we’re all prepared to play [the gameplan], we’ve been training it for the whole season and we’ve gotten really good at it.”
In terms of the key players to watch for Casey, Kirkwood gave West a good pump-up while standing by her side on Monday’s finals launch day. West had a player of her own in mind, and both promise to provide the sort of ball winning intent that Casey is looking for this weekend.
“Eliza West… she’s always there in those [clutch] moments and it’s really great that we have her here at the club,” Kirkwood said.
“We rely on a lot of players in all areas of the field but I really think Meg McDonald ,” West followed. “Since she’s come into being an on-baller, she’s added another level of physicality and toughness. She lays hard tackles, she plays her role really well and I think she’s helped us a lot. “She’ll be one to look out for because it’s hard to beat her – if she’s tackling you, it’s hard to break one of those tackles so good luck to whoever it is.”
I thought this was a hilarious sheedy style naming of the team until I realised the AFL had clearly just turned the sheet upside down and named the players. …or have they?
Weird numbers too…
