Maddi Gay has claimed Essendon’s 2024 AFLW Best and Fairest, bringing a fitting close to a terrific first season in red and black. 

The 28-year-old took home the award in front of teammates, coaches, staff and fans in at Crown on Friday night, finishing in front of starring runner-up Georgia Nanscawen and breakout defender Georgia Clarke in third place.

Gay was a dominant force in defence all year and made instant impact in her move from the Demons this season, named in the leadership group and featuring in every game of a season for the first time in her career.

The All Australian half back averaged 20 disposals, five marks and a staggering 453 metres gained per game, all career-highs

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Hawthorn star Eliza West has taken out the club’s best and fairest award in her first season in the brown and gold. 

The vice-captain polled 68 votes across the 2024 season, while captain and 2023 winner Emily Bates came in second on 60 votes, followed by young gun Jasmine Fleming on 58 votes.

West’s win is the result of her outstanding efforts in an impressive debut season with the Hawks, appearing in every game in 2024.

The 27-year-old led the team in average disposals (21.9), contested possessions (14), handballs (13.8), ground ball gets (9.8), tackles (7.8) and clearances (5.6).

West was appointed as vice-captain ahead of the 2024 season, immediately earning the respect of her fellow teammates after joining the club in the off-season.

The maximum number of votes a player can poll is eight, which West received on two occasions – In Week 5 against Geelong (season-high 16 tackles, 24 disposals and seven clearances) and Week 6 against Gold Coast (23 disposals and a goal).

Good on them.

I’ve always been a big fan of Maddi Gay and would have liked to have kept her but it sounded like she thought she needed a fresh start. Maybe we needed to try harder to keep her?

Eliza West is just too similar to our existing mids, small. We couldn’t have known Purcell would miss so much of the season. I think she is a more valuable player to Hawthorn than she would be for us. Win-win trade long-term and short term if Purcell didn’t get injured.

Yes both Maddi and Eliza had great years. Maddi wanted the move to the bombers and Eliza was squeezed out with Purcell and Hanks (unfortunately yes Liz Purcell missed 7 matches so Eliza would’ve been handy). 

1 hour ago, godees said:

Good on them.

I’ve always been a big fan of Maddi Gay and would have liked to have kept her but it sounded like she thought she needed a fresh start. Maybe we needed to try harder to keep her?

Eliza West is just too similar to our existing mids, small. We couldn’t have known Purcell would miss so much of the season. I think she is a more valuable player to Hawthorn than she would be for us. Win-win trade long-term and short term if Purcell didn’t get injured.

Maddi was actually considering retiring at the end of last season. The fresh start at another club has clearly been a wise decision.

 

 I just wish it wasn’t Essendon 😂

Happy for them both! Maddi certainly looked way fresher in her body than in 2023. Also she was a Bombers fan as a kid, so can never begrudge someone that opportunity.

It's hard to see players succeed elsewhere though. But when we see players like this have an immediate impact elsewhere, we can say we're doing our part for the growing and evening out the league. Which is to the benefit of all in the long term.

I do note that there's one ex-player who has achieved success but is conspicuously absent in our congratulations. 😂

46 minutes ago, Dees_In_October said:

 

I do note that there's one ex-player who has achieved success but is conspicuously absent in our congratulations. 😂

Maybe it’s because our mothers told us if we can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all. 🙃

17 hours ago, Ghostwriter said:

Maybe it’s because our mothers told us if we can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all. 🙃

I have to admit after North won the GF and they were mentioning her winning her third premiership with a third cup, my thoughts immediately went to "Wait til she spits the dummy and wants a trade....again....."

We must be a very good club to clear 2 Best and Fairests and a Premiership player in the same off season.

Maddi Gay is a big loss. I think Sherriff was more important than she's given credit for. 

But I reckon the one that really got away - and I know it was a while ago now - is Brenna Tarrant. 

21 hours ago, godees said:

Good on them.

I’ve always been a big fan of Maddi Gay and would have liked to have kept her but it sounded like she thought she needed a fresh start. Maybe we needed to try harder to keep her?

Eliza West is just too similar to our existing mids, small. We couldn’t have known Purcell would miss so much of the season. I think she is a more valuable player to Hawthorn than she would be for us. Win-win trade long-term and short term if Purcell didn’t get injured.

Sorry Eliza was improved with the Hawks but she is not that similar to Purcell. She is much more physical and tougher and was sorely missed and if we had had her even with the injuries we would have made the Finals and possibly a Flag chance.

Purcell is a very good player but is more polished than Eliza with skills far more finished.

Between the two we missed Eliza although she gid not have a great season last year. I think we need another class mid to add depth and variety to our on the ball division. 

Here’s hoping we can recruit a mid this draft coming up. 

 

1 hour ago, The Taciturn Demon said:

I think Sherriff was more important than she's given credit for. 

I like Sherriff a lot but I think Fitzy really stepped up in her absence this year.

Missed the Gay in the backline as she is a consistent performer and was really missed.  Eliza didn't fit into our fot structure, we couldn't see the injuries.  As for Birch, she seems to be the type of player that can't stay at a club long for whatever reason? Her last year for us was not very good compared to the previous years and it made sense to let her go, since she wanted out.  Was she the difference in them winning a flag, unlikely, as she went into a settled she, like she did with us.  In the end she got another medal with her teammates. 

At the same time the pool is players is really small in the AFLW, so good players will get offers from rival clubs to move to a higher tier in pay. 

12 hours ago, darkhorse72 said:

Missed the Gay in the backline as she is a consistent performer and was really missed.  Eliza didn't fit into our fot structure, we couldn't see the injuries.  As for Birch, she seems to be the type of player that can't stay at a club long for whatever reason? Her last year for us was not very good compared to the previous years and it made sense to let her go, since she wanted out.  Was she the difference in them winning a flag, unlikely, as she went into a settled she, like she did with us.  In the end she got another medal with her teammates. 

At the same time the pool is players is really small in the AFLW, so good players will get offers from rival clubs to move to a higher tier in pay. 

What a lot of rot that Eliza “didn’t fit into our fot structure “ ( whatever that is ). She didn’t have a great 2023 admittedly but a 2024 Eliza would fit into any team and improve it to Top4 standard, especially if Purcell was injured. She gets hard balls no other player can and was a great contributor in 2022 yo our Flag.

I get the sentiment Libby had a poor 2023 also and was part of what I believe may have been a team upset around Finals time ( pure suspicion by the way) as they played 2 very ordinary games vs Lions at Springfield in Round  10  ( was there) and Qual Final vs Roos at Ikon in a row plus 3/4 of a game vs Cats in Semi. Very unlike that team and from then no one was singing Libby’s praises on the contrary. 

Then the girls started to all want to leave “with different reasons“and it took until Mick changed our game plan we really got back our mojo  and team spirit. 

Now our new girls and some this year are the start of a new era and potential Top4 team to challenge the other Big 3,who are as influential was ever. 

I think we need to recruit size and pace to match the new girls on the block the Hawks who as I see it will be Kangas new challengers with their height and running game. 

Over to the “JT ladies team “ to get those good picks to develop our team from the 2022 to 2025  premiership model. 
 

19 hours ago, rjay said:

Fitzy really stepped up in her absence this year

Fitzy is a gem. I reckon she's a player who can get better again. 

5 hours ago, 58er said:

What a lot of rot that Eliza “didn’t fit into our fot structure “ ( whatever that is ). She didn’t have a great 2023 admittedly but a 2024 Eliza would fit into any team and improve it to Top4 standard, especially if Purcell was injured. She gets hard balls no other player can and was a great contributor in 2022 yo our Flag.

 

Why do you feel the need to attack other posters?

Surely you can express an opinion without lowering yourself to this.

6 hours ago, 58er said:

What a lot of rot that Eliza “didn’t fit into our fot structure “ ( whatever that is ). She didn’t have a great 2023 admittedly but a 2024 Eliza would fit into any team and improve it to Top4 standard, especially if Purcell was injured. She gets hard balls no other player can and was a great contributor in 2022 yo our Flag.

I get the sentiment Libby had a poor 2023 also and was part of what I believe may have been a team upset around Finals time ( pure suspicion by the way) as they played 2 very ordinary games vs Lions at Springfield in Round  10  ( was there) and Qual Final vs Roos at Ikon in a row plus 3/4 of a game vs Cats in Semi. Very unlike that team and from then no one was singing Libby’s praises on the contrary. 

Then the girls started to all want to leave “with different reasons“and it took until Mick changed our game plan we really got back our mojo  and team spirit. 

Now our new girls and some this year are the start of a new era and potential Top4 team to challenge the other Big 3,who are as influential was ever. 

I think we need to recruit size and pace to match the new girls on the block the Hawks who as I see it will be Kangas new challengers with their height and running game. 

Over to the “JT ladies team “ to get those good picks to develop our team from the 2022 to 2025  premiership model. 
 

I think this bolded part is why we have been willing to trade out Birch, West and now Mithin.

Not saying they aren't good players who would have continued to be part of our team, but collectively they lacked the size/height and pace of the next generation. 

From a list management perspective you need to trade something out to bring something in. And if we want to bring in top picks to set up that next tilt, we need to give something up.

You can also only have so many players in each tier, and if you want to retain young stars coming through, you need to have spots for them in your structure. Mithin and Birth would definitely have been relatively higher up the pay structure tiers too.

On 09/12/2024 at 11:05, The Taciturn Demon said:

Maddi Gay is a big loss. I think Sherriff was more important than she's given credit for. 

But I reckon the one that really got away - and I know it was a while ago now - is Brenna Tarrant. 

Yeah Tarrant has come along well. Reckon there was some go-home factor involved in that one.

Another one is Ash Saint (Woodland), to Adelaide then Port. Go-home factor again there.

15 hours ago, Dees_In_October said:

go-home factor involved in that one

Yeah. Fair call. It's why I'm a little bit nervous two or three of the best non-Academy players in this draft are from outside Victoria. 

I've been following the women from the start and have to admit I don't remember Ash Woodland. Did she show something in her four games for us?

6 hours ago, The Taciturn Demon said:

Yeah. Fair call. It's why I'm a little bit nervous two or three of the best non-Academy players in this draft are from outside Victoria. 

I've been following the women from the start and have to admit I don't remember Ash Woodland. Did she show something in her four games for us?

She played the first four games of the season (2019) as a defender.  Didn't do too well and was dropped and didn't make it back.  Others with more inside knowledge may know more and I'm happy to be corrected, but I got the impression she lost confidence and dropped her bundle a bit, and was delisted at the end of the season.

40 minutes ago, Craig T said:

She played the first four games of the season (2019) as a defender.  Didn't do too well and was dropped and didn't make it back.  Others with more inside knowledge may know more and I'm happy to be corrected, but I got the impression she lost confidence and dropped her bundle a bit, and was delisted at the end of the season.

I think it was a trade request back to SA? I don't recall registering it as a great loss at the time... then she was league leading goalkicker a few seasons later!

29 minutes ago, Dees_In_October said:

I think it was a trade request back to SA? I don't recall registering it as a great loss at the time... then she was league leading goalkicker a few seasons later!

I'm noticing that rapid and seemingly unexpected improvement in players is a feature of the AFLW. I suspect it's just the nature of a competition in its infancy. Denby Taylor springs to mind. 

4 minutes ago, The Taciturn Demon said:

I'm noticing that rapid and seemingly unexpected improvement in players is a feature of the AFLW. I suspect it's just the nature of a competition in its infancy. Denby Taylor springs to mind. 

Plenty of the unexpected! Love seeing when it just clicks (seemingly) all of a sudden.

Agree on Denby. If we can't keep her, she should get a go somewhere.

3 hours ago, Dees_In_October said:

I think it was a trade request back to SA? I don't recall registering it as a great loss at the time... then she was league leading goalkicker a few seasons later!

IIRC she wasn't picked up by any AFLW club the following year (2020).  I think she went back to playing in the SANFLW for a year, did well as a forward and the Crows then signed her the following season.

On 10/12/2024 at 08:34, deanox said:

I think this bolded part is why we have been willing to trade out Birch, West and now Mithin.

Not saying they aren't good players who would have continued to be part of our team, but collectively they lacked the size/height and pace of the next generation. 

From a list management perspective you need to trade something out to bring something in. And if we want to bring in top picks to set up that next tilt, we need to give something up.

You can also only have so many players in each tier, and if you want to retain young stars coming through, you need to have spots for them in your structure. Mithin and Birth would definitely have been relatively higher up the pay structure tiers too.

Fair and realistic comment