The Brisbane Lions have set a record for the highest score in an AFLW match after thumping the West Coast Eagles by 74 points in Perth.
The reigning premiers led 46-0 at half-time before cruising to a 15.8 (98) to 4.0 (24) victory.
The Lions’ total eclipsed the previous record score of 13.9 (87) set by Carlton against Gold Coast last year.
The winning margin was also the largest in AFLW history, bettering the Bulldogs’ 73-point victory over Carlton in 2018.
The Lions had the chance to become the first team to reach triple figures, but Greta Bodey’s 38-metre set shot with less than three minutes remaining drifted just wide.
The result improved the Lions’ win-loss record to 6-2, lifting them to fourth spot on the ladder and within a win of second-placed Melbourne.
The 30 percentage points they gained could prove crucial in the race for top-two and top-four berths.
The Eagles (1-7) are now last on the ladder following St Kilda’s shock three-point win over Gold Coast earlier in the day.
Star Lions midfielder Emma Bates finished with 31 disposals and seven clearances in a best afield display, while forward Jesse Wardlaw and Sophie Conway booted three goals apiece.
West Coast skipper Emma Swanson fought hard for 22 disposals and six clearances, but the midfield were outgunned by Brisbane’s on-ball brigade.
The only negative note for the Lions was Orla O’Dwyer’s right shoulder injury.
O’Dwyer sustained the injury while attempting a tackle and immediately left the field cradling her right arm.
Magpies beat Bulldogs
Collingwood fears gun midfielder Brittany Bonnici has suffered a ruptured ACL, souring a 25-point win over the Western Bulldogs that boosted its finals hopes.
The Magpies’ 10.6 (66) to 6.5 (41) victory at Victoria Park was their highest ever AFLW score and sent them six points clear of both the seventh-placed Bulldogs and eighth-placed Gold Coast.
But the win was marred when Bonnici had to be helped off the field in the first quarter after awkwardly landing from an aerial contest.
The 2021 All-Australian was consoled by sidelined co-captain Brianna Davey, who suffered a ruptured ACL earlier in the season.
Bonnici was later on crutches with her left knee iced.
“She’s just being assessed, she’ll go and have a scan but obviously it doesn’t look good at this stage so we’re expecting the worst,” coach Steve Symonds said.
Jaimee Lambert dominated for the Magpies, booting three goals from 22 disposals. She was supported by Ruby Schleicher, Mikala Cann and Sarah Rowe.
Magpies co-captain Steph Chiocci looked slick in her return from an Achilles injury, while the recalled Sabrina Frederick booted 2.3 in her best match for the club.
Saints break duck with win over Suns
St Kilda held off a surging Gold Coast to win its first match of the AFLW season by three points and strike a hammer blow to the Suns’ finals hopes.
The last-placed Saints led by 24 points early in the match but had to grit their teeth late as Suns forward Sarah Perkins spurned two chances to steal victory in the final two minutes.
With the 5.4 (34) to 4.7 (31) victory at Trevor Barker Beach Oval, St Kilda shook off Wednesday’s after-the-siren loss to GWS but remain bottom of the ladder.
The Suns are within touching distance of the top six but their poor percentage means they must win their final two matches and rely on other results to make finals.
St Kilda’s Tilly Lucas-Rodd (21 disposals, nine tackles) impressed through midfield while Cat Phillips (17 disposals) and Tarni White (15 disposals, seven tackles) were typically hard-working.
Tara Bohanna kept the Suns in the match with three goals, while defender Vivien Saad (14 touches, four marks) and midfielder Jaimee Stanton (16 disposals) worked hard all day.
St Kilda burst out of the blocks with four unanswered goals across the first two quarters, with two coming directly from Gold Coast turnovers.
The Saints suffered a major blow part way through the opening term when Rhi Watt was forced off with a knee injury, with Jacqui Vogt deployed in the ruck.
After Kate Shierlaw gave St Kilda a four-goal lead early in the second term, the Suns found a foothold in the game through Bohanna and Perkins.
The Suns trailed by 16 points at the final change but the brilliant Bohanna created two goals, including beating two St Kilda defenders for her third of the match, to cut the deficit to five.
With less than two minutes to go, Perkins received a free kick for a ruck infringement, but pushed her set shot wide.
Barely a minute later, Perkins took a massive mark from close range and had a more straight-forward chance to win the match, but missed again.
Blues defeat Giants
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Source: AFL NEWS ABC
