By Staff reporters
Melbourne premiership captain Max Gawn and Norm Smith medallist Christian Petracca have sent messages of support to Daisy Pearce’s Demons as they take on the Brisbane Lions in Sunday afternoon’s AFLW grand final.
The Demons are chasing their first AFLW flag after losing to Adelaide in last year’s decider and are underdogs against the Lions, who boast the league best-and-fairest winner in Ally Anderson and are playing in front of a home crowd at Springfield, near Ipswich.
Daisy Pearce and Breanna Koenen with the AFLW premiership cup.Credit:Getty Images
Pop star-turned Olympic swimmer Cody Simpson will sing the national anthem before the match.
The grand final could be a swansong for Melbourne captain Pearce and teammate Karen Paxman, both champions of the competition, although neither has made an announcement about their future.
Both teams go into the grand final unchanged, and six of The Age’s eight expert tipsters expect the Lions to win.
Gawn, who led Melbourne to an AFL premiership in 2021, sent a video message of support while holding his infant son, George.
“You deserve it. Unfortunately no one deserves anything in footy so you’ve got to go out there and win it, but I’ve got so much faith,” Gawn said.
“We’re planning George’s naps around it [the match] to make sure he can get the full two hours in.”
The AFLW grand final starts at 2.40pm AEDT. Come back for score updates after each quarter, and for all the news and analysis afterwards from Marnie Vinall in Brisbane.
