In the lead-up to the 10th season of the AFLW, here are some cherry-picked fun facts from Gemma Bastiani's AFLW Revolution series:

• In 2024, 14.6 per cent of all AFLW players were 180cm or taller, compared to just 6.6 per cent in the inaugural 2017 season.

• Melbourne’s average of 58.9 points in 2023 is the second highest average score, behind Adelaide’s 59.1 in 2019.

• Average tackles inside 50 across the league increased from 8.8 in 2017 to 14.1 in 2024.

• The Demons' premiership-winning defence in 2022 was the tightest defensive performance in AFLW history (avg. 18.6 points conceded).

• It wasn’t until 2021 that a player recorded 20 or more hitouts and two or more goals in a game.

• L.Pearce is highlighted as the first player in AFLW to record 20 or more hitouts and 20 or more disposals in a game and did it twice before any other player achieved the feat (and it’s only happened 10 times since).

• In the last two seasons more than 39 per cent of disposal across the league has been by hand, the highest ratio since the competition began. Melbourne is an exception, as “handballing has always been a key building block of its game, with between 38.7 per cent and 43.4 per cent of its disposal count handballs over the nine seasons. The gap of 4.7 per cent is the lowest of any inaugural team…”

There’s more analysis in the articles themselves, for example about the changing role of wingers and the reasons behind a weakening of midfield depth, as well as how increased training time and access to facilities has allowed for the development of the game away from a focus on personnel and one-on-one contests to systems, structures and better team coherence. Worth a read:

https://www.afl.com.au/aflw/news/1321475/aflw-revolution-how-the-forward-line-has-evolved-in-nine-seasons

https://www.afl.com.au/aflw/news/1325750/aflw-revolution-defence

https://www.afl.com.au/aflw/news/1335446/aflw-revolution-why-the-ruck-role-has-evolved-more-than-any-other

https://www.afl.com.au/aflw/news/1336001/aflw-revolution-the-clear-shift-in-strategy-thats-helped-midfields-boom

There's also this re: the soft cap, which provides useful context for some of the off-field stuff going on, particularly the difficulty facing assistant coaches:

https://www.afl.com.au/aflw/news/1342210/aflw-clubs-wrestle-with-soft-cap-limits-after-afl-increase

Posting this as well in case anyone missed it. Great article on inaugural Demon Sarah Lampard. Love that they chose to focus on her, as the most unsung player of the few remaining at the Dees from season 1. It's been a bit of a winding road for sure, with two ACLs and interesting to read what she's doing off-field now for her PhD:

https://www.afl.com.au/aflw/news/1342197/the-inaugurals-this-reliable-melbourne-demon-sarah-lampard-went-from-tagging-daisy-pearce-to-becoming-flag-teammates

Some great content on the demons socials for the AFLW leaders. What a great bunch of girls with amazing respect amongst them and ‘real’ love and care for each other.

If you want to get around something positive for the Dees the Woman’s program is definitely that. AFLW Season 10 will be something to look forward too.

Yes, was just coming to post these.

I like how, rather than getting them to speak about themselves, which usually is difficult for people and can end up in kind of boring responses because no one wants to talk themself up, they've got others to explain why these players have been voted in, which gives us all a much better insight into what the group feels (the emotions!) and values.

In the lead-up to Season 10, I've been looking back over the 10 seasons and how our list has evolved since those early seasons and how our 2025 list shapes up.

As we know, in 2025, three players (Lampard, Paxman and Pearce) remain at the Dees from the inaugural 2017 S1 Melbourne list of 28 (list size expanded to 30 for S2 onwards). After a lot of turnover initially, the number of original Dees players has remained fairly stable: S2 (20 inaugural players), S3 (14), S4 (11), S5 (6), S6 (5), S7 (5), S8 (4), S9 (4), S10 (3). Who will be the last one standing?

Outside of the Demons, there are about 20 additional inaugural players still playing for their original AFLW team in 2025. There are also 11 inaugural Demons still on other AFLW lists.

The average retention of active listed players between seasons has been 23 players. The retention of players between S9 and S10 (26 players) is our second-most behind the 27 players retained between S7 and S8.

On our 2025 list, all but four players were originally drafted or signed to the Dees, the exceptions being Harris (Brisbane), Purcell (Geelong), Johnson (Port) and D.Taylor (Geelong). Including inactive players, on our list we have 24 Victorians, 3 Irishwomen, 2 Queenslanders, 1 South Australian, 1 Tasmanian and 1 Western Australian.

Also of interest to AFLW fans may be this article by Jason Lassey at SportsIndustryAU, which provides a deeper look into how the AFLW is faring in the lead-up to the 10th season.

It covers attendance numbers, as well as TV audiences, impact on participation and the finances of the league.

https://footyindustry.com/index.php/2025/07/08/the-aflw-endures-despite-the-same-old-critics-and-criticisms/

Wonder if their games are televised on free to air on saturdays?

Some more mildly interesting trivia, this time looking at our 2022B (S7) list and team.

- 26 of the 33 listed players (including inactive) are still on an AFLW list for S9, 19 of them at the Demons.

- 15 of the 21 premiership players remain (the outs being Birch, Gay, Mithen, D.Pearce, Sherriff, West).

And just out of interest, I've compared this with the men's premiership team (I've included the medi-sub) and how the outs went.

Remaining in 2025: M = 16/23, W = 15 of 21

Traded: M = 4, W = 5

Retired: M = 3, W = 1

On 11/07/2025 at 19:08, DEE32 said:

If you want to get around something positive for the Dees the Woman’s program is definitely that. AFLW Season 10 will be something to look forward too.

Hear hear.

It's going to be so much fun. They looked distinctly ordinary at the start of last season but came home with a wet sail. I reckon the list is in good shape.

Can't wait.

On 21/07/2025 at 16:44, The Taciturn Demon said:

Hear hear.

It's going to be so much fun. They looked distinctly ordinary at the start of last season but came home with a wet sail. I reckon the list is in good shape.

Can't wait.

1/2 time at the Hawks praccy game. 7.8 already (to Hawks 2.2). 8 on bench, so squad hit-out.

General impression, super ball movement, marking, speed, attack on the ball, and tackling. And great team spirit. (I'm not good at picking out individuals, sorry)

So, yes!

Edited July 26Jul 26 by Timothy Reddan-A'Blew

All over, 9.8 to 4.4 (so Hawks by 2 points in 2nd half - they lifted their own movement).

Anyone see who the injury was? (backline, other end from me) A tall; Gillard? Harris blood-ruled, too, I think.

56 minutes ago, Timothy Reddan-A'Blew said:

Anyone see who the injury was? (backline, other end from me) A tall; Gillard? Harris blood-ruled, too, I think.

Fingers crossed for whoever it was!

Watched this in case anything mentioned, but no. Paxy happy with the hit out though.

Hopefully a match report to come later. You wouldn't know from the AFLW website that games were even happening today.

54 minutes ago, Dees_In_October said:

Fingers crossed for whoever it was!

Watched this in case anything mentioned, but no. Paxy happy with the hit out though.

Hopefully a match report to come later. You wouldn't know from the AFLW website that games were even happening today.

They should be - they seemed to be in everything! 😊

No injuries queried, or mentioned by 'Brew', so all clear, it seems? Goodo!

Edited July 26Jul 26 by Timothy Reddan-A'Blew

3 hours ago, Timothy Reddan-A'Blew said:

All over, 9.8 to 4.4 (so Hawks by 2 points in 2nd half - they lifted their own movement).

Anyone see who the injury was? (backline, other end from me) A tall; Gillard? Harris blood-ruled, too, I think.

From our DA who were present there today…

Tayla’s right ankle is an issue. Very upset on the bench.

Tahls limped off and straight down to the rooms. Maybe hyperextension of her right knee.

Loz Pearce came off with a neck issue but now maybe just neck and shoulder soreness (?)

Apparently our midfield “looked fabulous and rotations through were seamless.”

1 minute ago, Ghostwriter said:

From our DA who were present there today…

Tayla’s right ankle is an issue. Very upset on the bench.

Tahls limped off and straight down to the rooms. Maybe hyperextension of her right knee.

Loz Pearce came off with a neck issue but now maybe just neck and shoulder soreness (?)

Apparently our midfield “looked fabulous and rotations through were seamless.”

Thanks, A.

So, 3 talls, eh? Hmmm... May further explain some of the drop off from the cracking show in the first half! And we watch, fingers crossed...

Yes, the mids, and their back and forward links, were a fabulous group.

As said earlier, it's going to be fun! 😊

Edited July 26Jul 26 by Timothy Reddan-A'Blew

Just now, Timothy Reddan-A'Blew said:

Thanks, A. So, 3 talls, eh? Hmmm... May further explain some of the drop off from the cracking show in the first half! And we watch, fingers crossed...

Yes, the mids, and their back and forward links, were a fabulous group.

As said earlier, it's going to be fun! 😊

Speaking of fingers, it seems Edo injured one of her fingers. She came off, they taped her fingers together, gave her a couple of pain pills and she was good to go 👍🏽

4 hours ago, Ghostwriter said:

From our DA who were present there today…

Tayla’s right ankle is an issue. Very upset on the bench.

Tahls limped off and straight down to the rooms. Maybe hyperextension of her right knee.

Loz Pearce came off with a neck issue but now maybe just neck and shoulder soreness (?)

Apparently our midfield “looked fabulous and rotations through were seamless.”

Don't like the sound of that for Tayla. It would be tough to lose Gillard on top of Colvin being out. Fingers crossed for all!

16 hours ago, Dees_In_October said:

Zanker! Good lord!

28 minutes ago, The Taciturn Demon said:

Zanker! Good lord!

That's a good 'Good lord', I presume?

I particularly liked her team-oriented efforts -her worm-burner to McNamara was a gem.

She still gets down on herself when she thinks she's stuffed up (she shouldn't, and she generally hasn't anyway!)

2 hours ago, Timothy Reddan-A'Blew said:

That's a good 'Good lord', I presume?

Yep.

Seems to get better every year and she's already very good.

1 hour ago, The Taciturn Demon said:

Yep.

Seems to get better every year and she's already very good.

My 'down on herself' comment arose after she 'dropped' a contested mark near the goal square. She followed up strongly, kept the ball in, got it inboard, and a teammate's goal resulted. But as others celebrated and the ball made its way back to the centre she was shaking her head and punching her sides.

However, she showed a much lighter side joking with the Dees-staff goal ump when the ball was away.

How to react to this morning's mail, after my <cough> 'contrasting' experiences at Casey and Docklands on the weekend?!

On 26/07/2025 at 18:03, Dees_In_October said:

I thought Paxy was looking a bit past it at times last year but not the case based on that highlight package 💪🏻