The Western Bulldogs are about to embark on their second AFLW finals appearance this weekend, and they look a lot different to the side which won the 2018 premiership.
The club hung on to a small core of players while being raided by expansion clubs over the past five years – with former Bulldogs becoming stars of other clubs – and then topped up with young guns who have rebuilt the side.
Ellie Blackburn with the AFLW premiership cup, as the Bulldogs prepare for their second finals appearance.Credit:AFL Photos
“It’s been tough,” said Western Bulldogs captain Ellie Blackburn of losing so many teammates over the years.
“I think back to what it was in 2018, and the players we had. You know Mon [Monique Conti] and Libby [Birch] were a part of that premiership team. I mean Mon won best on ground in the grand final. So, you know, you have a look at the calibre of talent that is across the competition that we’ve lost and produced from our football club.”
Western Bulldogs’ Brooke Lochland and captain Ellie Blackburn celebrate after winning the AFLW grand final in 2018.Credit:Chris Hopkins
In total, the inaugural side lost 13 key players to rival clubs during the competition’s three expansions (2019, 2020 and 2022), including big names such as Monique Conti and Katie Brennan to Richmond, Emma Kearney, Jenna Bruton and Kim Rennie to North Melbourne, Brooke Lochland to Sydney, Isabel Huntington to GWS and Bonnie Toogood and Daria Bannister to Essendon.
Tiarna Ernst also joined Gold Coast and Aasta O’Connor Geelong before their retirement.
The skipper added it’s “bittersweet” because she’s proud of how well her former teammates are playing at their respective clubs but admits “it’s been really challenging”.
Four of those players are now captains or co-captains at their new clubs, including Brennan (Richmond), Toogood (Essendon), Kearney (North Melbourne) and Brooke Lochland (Sydney).
“You’re really proud that we’ve been able to produce a lot of good players and good leaders in amongst the competition,” said Blackburn.
“But the fact that we’re still competitive as a team and as a football club, and we’re back playing finals footy, I’m really proud of that. I’m excited for what this current group has at hand.”
Blackburn attributes the Bulldogs’ ability to remain competitive and reach their second finals berth to the talent they’ve brought in to replace those core players lost, such as Alice Edmonds, Jessica Fitzgerald, Isabelle Pritchard, Gabby Newton and Elisabeth Georgostathis, among others.
“These players have really stepped up and made the most of their opportunity that’s come as a result of the expansion, and then we kept some older players in the likes of Kirsty Lamb and Bailey Hunt, who have been there right from the start, and Naomi Ferres,” she said.
The Bulldogs were also one of the hardest hit by COVID disruptions last season, including being the first team to have the virus to run through it.
The team’s round two and three games were postponed after they were unable to field a team with a significant number of players entering health and safety protocols, and then dealt with a condensed fixture and varying recovery level for players.
Western Bulldogs 2018 Premiership Team.Credit:Wayne Ludbey
Toogood told The W Show that fatigue was a big issue for the group, including in returning to training, and she herself was quite sick, including experiencing hallucinations. “I did get quite sick. The fever was the thing that got me.”
However, Blackburn said the experience helped the players learn how to recover quickly from games and build resilience “as a result of everything that’s happened to us”.
When the Western Bulldogs take on Collingwood in an elimination final on Sunday at Victoria Park, it will have been 1688 days since the premiership win which marked their previous finals appearance. Along with Blackburn, Deanna Berry, Ferres, Hunt, Kirsten McLeod and Lamb are the remaining Bulldogs who played that day.
“I’m excited to be back playing finals since … We’ve missed out just over the last couple of years and to finally have made it, I’m really proud. And I think it’s that sign of maturity for our group moving forward,” Blackburn said.
“It’s always a good battle against Collingwood,” she added, “to have the game against players who we know are such a competitive team and a football club. We’re expecting a huge turnout on Sunday, so I can’t wait for the game.”
AFLW finals kick off on Friday night with a grand final rematch between Melbourne and Adelaide at Ikon Park.
Demons star forward Tayla Harris avoided a suspension for the final after being charged with forceful front-on contact against West Coast’s Sophie McDonald, which was assessed as careless conduct, low impact, and high contact, resulting in a $400 fine. Melbourne are challenging the charge as they didn’t believe it was a reportable offence.
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