The time has arrived for the Western Bulldogs to begin their premiership defence. And there wouldn't be many tougher first-up opponents than a date with the Adelaide Crows at Norwood Oval on Saturday night, following the season opener between Geelong and Collingwood. Out of the seven sides that the Western Bulldogs played against in the inaugural season, the Crows are the only side that the Dogs haven't beaten yet, having lost to them in both seasons.
However, the brief history between the two sides could perhaps be the seeds of what could be a bit of a rivalry much similar to both men's teams. In their inaugural meeting in 2017, the Crows caused a massive boilover at the Whitten Oval. At the time the Bulldogs headed into that game the better of the two sides, but as we all know by now, the Crows proved to be the better side all season long. Last year, Norwood Oval was treated to a cracking game of Footy, with the Crows edging ahead at the right time of the game, winning by seven points.
If the Dogs are to go far in 2019, then they must beat Adelaide here in South Australia. The Crows missed out on a top-two berth last year, but given that the majority of their list is healthy and looked very, very good against Fremantle in their practice match a couple of weeks back, they look like they'll contend this year. The one problem is how they address their ruck stocks, following the season-ending knee injury to Rhiannon Metcalfe, who played a very important part in their premiership team in 2017.
The Bulldogs have a small problem of their own, having lost Brooke Lochland with a fractured leg during their practice match against Collingwood. Lochland won the league's goal-kicking award last year in what was a breakout year. They will also be without Izzy Huntington for most of this season as she looks to battle back from a knee injury sustained late last year. They will also be without the current league best and fairest Emma Kearney, who switched to new club North Melbourne in the off-season – posing an interesting situation at who will help co-captain Ellie Blackburn win the footy in the middle.
The Teams
Western Bulldogs
NEW: Belinda Smith (Fremantle), Eleanor Brown (AFLW Draft), Celine Moody (Rookie Selection)
B: Libby Birch, Lauren Spark, Bailey Hunt HB: Nicole Callinan, Tiarna Ernst, Hannah Scott MIDS: Kim Rennie, Kirsty Lamb, Ellie Blackburn, Belinda Smith HF: Naomi Ferres, Katie Brennan, Monique Conti F: Kirsten McLeod, Emma Mackie, Aisling Utri INT: Bonnie Toogood, Celine Moody, Eleanor Brown, Angelica Gogos, Deanna Berry EMG: Aisling McCarthy, Selena Karlson
Three players will make their debut in the red, white and blue on Saturday night. This trio of debutants include ex-Docker Belinda Smith, who was picked up as a delisted free agent over the off-season and having been named in the middle, could play some serious minutes in the Dogs' engine room. The club's first pick in the draft, Eleanor Brown will also make her debut and given her ability to run, she could play a variety of roles. She will start on the bench alongside Celine Moody, who was brought in as a rookie, but given her height, she will most likely play as a second ruck or even pinch-hit up forward.
Adelaide
NEW: Sophie Li (Carlton), Renee Forth (GWS), Chloe Scheer (AFLW Draft), Hannah Martin (AFLW Draft), Jess Foley (AFLW Draft), Ailish Considine (Rookie Selection), Maisie Nankivell (Rookie List)
B: Renee Forth, Sarah Allan, Courtney Cramey HB: Angela Foley, Chelsea Randall, Stevie-Lee Thompson MIDS: Jess Foley, Erin Phillips, Dayna Cox, Ebony Marinoff HF: Deni Varnhagen, Anne Hatchard, Chloe Scheer F: Eloise Jones, Marijana Rajcic, Justine Mules INT: Maisie Nankivell, Hannah Martin, Jenna McCormick, Ailish Considine, Sophie Li EMG: Sally Riley, Danielle Ponter
The Crows will come into this game with seven debutants. Headlining these seven is the former Giant marquee player Renee Forth, who missed all of the first season with a knee injury and played a few games last year. Sophie Li, who played for Carlton last year, will play her first game in Crow colours as well. Draftees Chloe Scheer, Hannah Martin and Jess Foley were all very impressive in their practice match and have all been rewarded accordingly with their first games, whilst their two rookie selections in Netballer Maisie Nankivell and Irish recruit Ailish Considine have been named on the bench.
The Big Question
Western Bulldogs – Who Will Stop Erin Phillips?
This is very imperitive for them to quell the influence of the 2017 AFLW best and fairest winner, who torched them with four goals in their last meeting. Libby Birch had the job on her last time – but keep in mind this is a fully-fit Erin Phillps that they'll be dealing with this time around. I'm not sure if this is a one-person tagging job. If she does rest up forward though, I'd love to see Hannah Scott match-up on her. She's tough as nails and I have no doubt that she'll make her earn her possessions.
Adelaide – Can They Solve Their Ruck Dilemma?
It was a devastating blow for the Crows to see their number one ruck go down with a season-ending knee injury. She was a very important piece to Adelaide's premiership success in 2017, so what they do here will be interesting to watch. Mature-aged recruit Jess Foley will get the starting job – the former basketball player has the athleticism to be a solid ruck and she displayed strong hands in their practice game the other week. It's going to be very interesting to see how this plays out on Saturday.
Players To Watch
Western Bulldogs – Katie Brennan
Having had her two-match suspension thrown out at the end of the 2018 season, co-captain Brennan comes back into the Bulldogs side and will most likely face off against Adelaide co-captain Chelsea Randall once again. These two players are amongst the best in the Women's Football today and it would be awesome to see them go at it once more – add another chapter to the rivalry. This time last year, Brennan lit up the first half with three majors. But this time she'll have a more difficult opponent.
Adelaide – Ebony Marinoff
She is amongst my favourite AFLW footballers from outside the Western Bulldogs, Ebony Marinoff had a cracking 2018 in the middle, racking up averages of 15.6 disposals, 3.1 clearances and an absurd 11.7 tackles per game – that is no typo. She is a contested bull in the middle – averaging nine contested possessions per game in 2018. She is one person that I will keep an eye out for. I just love the way she goes about her football, and given that she is just 21 years of age, I feel her best footy is yet to come.
Final Verdict
This is a really hard game to predict. Bias wants me to say the Bulldogs to open the season with a win, but any game at Norwood Oval is a difficult assignment, and I have a gut feeling that the Crows are going to be a force to be reckoned with – not just in this game, but in the season overall. I think they're in the box seat to get the job done here in what will be Matthew Clarke's first game as head coach.
However, with a handful of experience players out of the side with injury, one has to wonder if their draftees and rookie players will impact straight away. The Bulldogs will have 16 players who were in the premiership team last year – Adelaide will have 12 that played in their 2017 premiership. It's an interesting statistic, but I think I'm going to have to settle with going the Crows at home, after a disappointing 2018 season, I think they're ripe for a big year in 2019.
Adelaide By 4 Points