Brisbane Vs. Geelong Outlook
The first of the two preliminary finals will pit two of the league’s hottest teams against one another. The favoured Brisbane Lions finished the home and away season fourth on the ladder but have won four of their last five.
These victories include their defeat of the minor premier Adelaide Crows in the qualifiers and week eight while sandwiched between those wins was a thumping of second ranked Melbourne.
Geelong finished the season sixth on the ladder but has turned up their play in the second half of the season. The Cats are coming off their own victory over Melbourne in the semi-final and have won five of their past six matches.
Surprisingly, this will be the first matchup between these two sides since January of 2022 as in each of the past two home and away seasons they have not drawn one another.
As for their preliminary matchup, I expect it to be a tightly fought game. Geelong is a scrappy side who will use their quality midfield speed to rush Brisbane players with the ball in hand.
They made it especially hard for Melbourne’s defenders last week to advance the ball down the field which played a massive role in them gaining a large lead. If they can apply similar pressure to the Lions, they may see early success again.
Brisbane has a similar history of forward pressure making it tough on opposing defenders in their own third. Their aggressiveness through the midfield consistently causes fits for their opponents while their transition play is great as they get the ball to forwards and wingers in key positions.
This leads to the Lions being a team that can score in the blink of an eye.
North Melbourne Looking for the Upset
Tomorrow’s preliminary final sees the minor premier Adelaide Crows taking on the Kangaroos of North Melbourne. Because of the way the AFLW finals work with no re-seeding, these two are the highest ranked squads remaining from the home and away season.
Adelaide went 9-1 on the season before falling narrowly in their qualifier to Brisbane. They appeared to take some of their frustrations out on Sydney in the semi-final as they thrashed the Swans 82-15.
North Melbourne had a solid home and away season in their own right finishing 7-3. In their qualifier against the second seeded Melbourne Demons, they dominated to the tune of 50-9.
Adelaide is the league’s best team and as such are favoured, but this will be no walk in the park. North Melbourne is arguably the best defensive team in the AFLW as each layer of their squad provides help defensively.
Evidenced by their holding of Melbourne to nine points, if the Crows attack isn’t swift and careful, they may get bottled up. Adelaide’s elite midfield will play a massive role in the match as their craft and decision-making is the key to the teams offensive success.
Grand Final First or Another Classic Matchup?
Adelaide and Brisbane are two of the AFLW’s behemoths having met in the Grand Final twice and having made it their four times each. If they are victorious this weekend, we will have another clash of the titans.
On the other hand, neither Geelong nor North Melbourne have ever made the Grand Final meaning if they both win that would be an interesting plot in its own right as a unique club would become AFLW premiers.
