Geelong will be looking to bounce back quickly after a tough outing against Essendon in the VFLW at Deakin University Elite Sports Precinct on Sunday.
The Cats couldn’t match the Bombers’ attacking play as opportunities eluded them, going down 1.5 (11) to 13.11 (89).
The Cats started strongly, with most of the early play happening in their forward half. But Essendon’s defence proved hard to break through.
A Liv Fuller shot at goal halfway through the opening term was called touched as the Cats managed just two behinds to Essendon’s 2.3 in the opening term.
It didn’t get any easier from there as Essendon continued to pile on the scoreboard pressure, pulling away to a 34-point lead before a goal to Mia Skinner just on the half-time siren broke the drought for the Cats.
The Bombers lifted a gear after half-time, kicking 8.4 and restricting the Cats to just two behinds to run away with a big win and solidify their claim as one of the top teams of 2022.
The Bombers are still undefeated this season – the only mar on their record a draw against Southern Saints in Round 5 – while the Cats are eager to rediscover their early season form, after a string of three consecutive losses.
The Cats will be striving to turn their fortunes around when they take on Western Bulldogs at VU Whitten Oval next Sunday.
By the numbers
31, 10, 5
It was another impressive day for Laura Gardiner in the midfield. The 19-year-old was the standout on the stats sheet, with a game-high 31 disposals, 10 clearances (six more than the next best player) and five tackles.
118
The Cats will need to win a lot more of the ball if they’re to get back to their early season form. On Sunday, the Cats were smashed in the disposal count, trailing Essendon 207-325. They also had 20 fewer inside 50s.
The Cats were on level-pegging with the Bombers at stoppages, with 24-25 hitouts and three more clearances, but one of the Bombers’ strengths was in winning the ball back.
Injury Update
Chloe Leonard – Chest strain (third quarter). Continued playing, but came off late in the contest.
Zali Friswell – Rolled ankle (third quarter). Expected to miss at least Round 7, but will get scans this week to assess injury.
From the coach – Andrew Bruce
“I thought our initial start was really strong. We tried to cover off and the way we wanted to attack the contest and put some pressure on. Probably for the majority of the first quarter we did that, and we just didn’t take our opportunities in front of goals, whereas the Bombers kicked a couple and we missed a couple. After that, we were on the back foot.
“There was a clear lack of work rate and effort from our players – I don’t think we can shy away from that. Whereas the Bombers had 21 players who worked really hard for each other and shared the football really well and had a really good system. We left it to way too few players to do that, which was really disappointing.
“I thought Chloe Leonard was outstanding in defence. We gave Chloe a job on one of their key players and she did an outstanding job. She carried an injury through from the third quarter and came off late in the game, but it was just a really great effort from Chloe.”
VFLW Round 6
GEELONG 0.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 (11)
ESSENDON 2.3 5.7 8.10 13.11 (89)
GOALS
Geelong: Mia Skinner
Essendon: Federica Frew 4, Mia-Rae Clifford 2, Grace Dicker 2, Cecilia McIntosh 2, Courtney Ugle 2, Joanne Doonan
BEST
Geelong: Laura Gardiner, Chloe Leonard, Tamara Smith, Maddie Boyd
Essendon: Georgia Nanscawen, Danielle Marshall, Cecilia McIntosh, Federica Frew
