Source :- THE AGE NEWS
All dynasties eventually have to end. But North Melbourne’s AFLW team are clearly steadfast on remaining immortal for, well, for as long as possible.
On Sunday afternoon 4048 fans packed into a wind-whipped Arden Street Oval, to watch the all-conquering Kangaroos’ reign continue with a tight 10-point win over Carlton – their third-lowest winning margin since their unbeaten streak began after the 2023 grand final defeat.
The ever-dominant Kangaroos also played a draw early in their 2024 premiership season.
North have advanced to a record-extending 32st-consecutive victory. They faced a tough onslaught from Carlton defenders who dimmed the Roos’ typical fast attacking style and managed to keep the margin largely to about one goal.
North coach Darren Crocker conceded the winning margin – the closest a team has come to the Kangaroos all year – was nail-bitingly tight, and said Carlton “threw everything at us”.
“There were lots of almost moments in that game where I thought that we were going to break the game open, but we… to Carlton’s credit, we just couldn’t,” he said.
“They made it, very hard for us to score, we were able to still get there, which was really pleasing.”
Irishwoman Erika O’Shea said the reigning premiers knew “Carlton was going to give it to us”, praising the Blues’ pressure and physicality.
“They’re a young team… they’re fast, and I suppose it was an exhausting game. It was very hot, but I suppose we love the challenge,” she said with a grin.
Carlton announced their intention to challenge the Roos within the opening seconds of the first quarter. The Blues defenders brought a high level of pressure and capitalised on some relieving marks, with Harriet Cordner leading the charge with four intercepts and one intercept mark by the end of the first quarter.
The Blues’ pressure limited Talia Randall to two behinds in the opening term but couldn’t stop Alice O’Loughlin from booting North’s first goal. But two consecutive goals from Nell Morris-Dalton and Lila Keck put Carlton in front during the second quarter, earning a wild cheer from the smattering of Blues supporters in the crowd.
But Randall quickly snatched the lead back with a perfect goal from 45m out, followed by another from Blaithin Bouge.
Carlton Lilly Goss had the job on last year’s best and fairest winner Ash Riddell, dulling the midfielder’s impact briefly. Goss and teammate Erone Fitzpatrick were also at the centre at one of the game’s best moments.
In the third term Goss swooped on the Sherrin and sprinted down the field, dodging a fierce tackle from O’Shea and booting the ball towards the goal. Fitzpatrick almost did a 360-degree turn, scooping the ball up and snapping arguably the best goal of the week in AFLW.
By three-quarter time, the rowdy North Melbourne crowd were noticeably quiet as Carlton sensed a rare opportunity to unseat the Roos. The Blues were within a goal and an animated Carlton coach Matthew Buck came down from the coach’s box to shout instructions from the boundary line.
Ultimately, it was a goalless final quarter with Carlton holding North to only two behinds. But Carlton failed to capitalise on key moments and North held on to win 4.9 (33) to 3.5 (23).
Post-match Buck said his message to the group at three-quarter time was about “continued belief”.
“We felt like we took a good step forward today in the way we want to play, and the way we want to play against a really strong team,” he said.
“You love playing against the best side, and clearly the Kangaroos being the best in the competition for a long time, and they were great against today. You have to beat them, like you have to beat them in all different areas of the ground.”
North Melbourne face Hawthorn next week and the week after have a highly anticipated clash against Melbourne – a match up that could be their biggest test.
Under the stewardship of new coach Tim Wilson, Melbourne remain undefeated in 2026 and are second on the ladder. The Demons face Carlton next week – a match up Crocker said he would be tuning in to.
The Sydney Swans AFLW team have earned the keys to the city after winning the Sydney derby against the GWS Giants by 31 points at Henson Park on Sunday.
With 7340 fans – a record for the AFLW at the ground – enjoying a sunny September afternoon, Sydney’s 13.9 (87) to 8.8 (56) victory gives them the upper hand of three wins to the Giants’ two since the inaugural derby in 2022.
The Swans led early and maintained a healthy advantage over the Giants for the rest of the match. That was mirrored in the crowd, where spectators in red and white far outnumbered those in orange.
Chloe Molloy piloted the charge for the Swans, helping them to a lead of 41 points at one stage in the third quarter.
All dynasties eventually have to end. But North Melbourne’s AFLW team are clearly steadfast on remaining immortal for, well, for as long as possible.
On Sunday afternoon 4048 fans packed into a wind-whipped Arden Street Oval, to watch the all-conquering Kangaroos’ reign continue with a tight 10-point win over Carlton – their third-lowest winning margin since their unbeaten streak began after the 2023 grand final defeat.
The ever-dominant Kangaroos also played a draw early in their 2024 premiership season.
North have advanced to a record-extending 32st-consecutive victory. They faced a tough onslaught from Carlton defenders who dimmed the Roos’ typical fast attacking style and managed to keep the margin largely to about one goal.
The latest AFLW round five results:
Geelong’s Georgie Prespakis and West Coast’s Ella Roberts have both starred as their respective AFLW teams recorded a first win over their opponents on Saturday.
The Cats (4-1) retained a top-four spot, recording a fourth-straight victory and their first in seven attempts against the Crows (2-3) with an 8.9 (57) to 6.10 (46) win at Unley Oval.
Gun midfielder Prespakis simply was dynamic, racking up match highs of 32 disposals, 19 contested possessions and nine clearances.
In Perth, Daisy Pearce’s West Coast (1-4) posted their first win of the season in a 6.10 (46) to 6.5 (41) victory over the Brisbane Lions (2-3) at Perth’s Mineral Resources Park.
Sunny Lappin kicked three goals and sparked the second-half surge that led to Gold Coast’s 30-point win over Collingwood.
The Suns (3-2) kicked four goals to one in the third term – two of those to Lappin – to set up their 9.8 (62) to 4.8 (32) victory at People First Stadium.
Maddy Brancatisano kicked two goals, Charlie Rowbottom had 29 disposals and Dekota Baron provided the highlight of the day with a towering mark-of-the-year contender.
Mikayla Nurse suffered a nasty cut on the face after a head clash with Suns teammate Lucy Single late in the match.
Hawthorn coach Daniel Webster hailed his players’ ability to dig deep for an 11-point AFLW win over the Western Bulldogs after losing captain Emily Bates to a suspected serious knee injury.
Bates will have scans on her right knee in coming days after the leg twisted underneath her in a tackle at the Kennedy Community Centre on Saturday.
Umpires held up play for several minutes before Bates was taken off the field on a stretcher as teammates showed support for their much-loved skipper.
The Hawks also lost Laura Stone (concussion) after an early head clash with an opponent and were 11 points down at halftime.
Sydney have lost former All-Australian Brenna Tarrant to a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in a hammer blow to their AFLW flag hopes.
Tarrant, 24, will have surgery and miss the rest of the season and likely a large chunk of the 2027 campaign.
The defender, who was All-Australian in 2024, had played all four games in 2026, averaging 2.3 marks, eight disposals and 2.3 spoils.
“Sydney Swans defender Brenna Tarrant will miss the remainder of the 2026 AFLW season with a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament,” the Swans said in a statement on Friday.
“Tarrant will require surgery, but that will be determined upon further medical advice in the coming days.”
Tarrant is the third AFLW Swan, after Alice Mitchell and Alex Neyland, to suffer an ACL injury this year.
AAP
