AFLW 2022b - R9 vs Gold Coast - Friday @ Metricon.

[kruddler]

3rd Friday night game in a row. This time its the later game.

Gold Coast are definitely gettable, but will be pushing hard for finals. Whereas after R8, our hopes have all but gone.

[kruddler]

Small chance we can still make finals if we win....and win well.

2 changes.

OUT: Pound (study commitments), Plane
IN: ODea, Schaap.

[laj]

Fell away just at the end of the qtr. 13pts at 3/4 time is a big margin in the women's game.

[kruddler]

Really missing a key forward.

Too many long kicks to basically nothing I50. Girls idenified it at 1/4 time, but nothing really changes because of the personnel we have.

We can't kick to our own advantage and it shows.

[madbluboy]

Harford needs to go.

[kruddler]

Harford needs to go.

Realistically, we have been more competitive than i thought we'd be given how much we were gutting in the off-season.
Literally 1/3 of our best team went out, including MVP Prespakis.

We got Vellardo in, who has been ok, but far from great.

I'm not sure a new coach could've done any better.

....as we see our former key forward emphasizing the point with her 2nd.

[madbluboy]

Why did they a leave? Clearly there is a crap culture there.

[laj]

Harford needs to go.

We have a bog ordinary side after the gutting of it the last couple of years.

[kruddler]

Why did they a leave? Clearly there is a crap culture there.

Expansion teams and the pull of playing for your childhood side took care of a couple.
More money would've been a factor too.
Sure culture can limit that somewhat, but it basically happened across the board.

[Lods]

We have to be patient and...
We have to stop looking at a 'semi-pro' league and comparing it with a fully professional competition with a 120+ years of history.

The women's competition is as settled as my 'weetbix, crunchy nut, nutra-grain' breakfast combination.

Expansion was always going to gut existing sides.
I guess the question is...Would it have been better to be in at the start, and be 'gutted now'...or wait until this last season, and be the 'gutter' of existing sides?
I'm not sure what the answer is ..I suspect being in at the start may have cost us a few initial supporters who were a bit dismayed by the loss of players.

The factors Kruddler mentions meant existing sides were never going to be able to maintain settled lists.
Some of these problems with retention are short term and unique.
How many AFL men players would cite a move to a club because they were life long supporters as the main reason for that move?
That factor would be way down the list.
It's more about money, opportunities and family reasons...and that will be the same for the women as the AFLW progresses.

Luck also plays a bit of a part in the AFLW as to how many of your players want a move.
Some existing sides will have been affected by expansion more than others.

As far as culture goes...this is not something you can establish in a few short years with such expansion and movement happening.

And as for interest and support...
I suspect a lot of older supporters will never fully invest in a Carlton AFLW team...but five year old Carlton kids, Jack and Jill, will grow up with the side, and they will be able to tell their kids about our champion 200+game  AFLW players.