Melbourne Remains Unbeaten with 6-0 Record but Faces Gall Injury Concerns
Melbourne stand alone at the top of the AFLW ladder, unbeaten after six rounds and fresh from a commanding 34-point win over Carlton at a blustery Casey Fields.
The 8.10 (58) to 3.6 (24) victory was as much a statement as it was a scoreboard. A day after Hawthorn stunned defending premiers North Melbourne, the Demons knew the equation: beat the Blues, go 6-0, and take outright top spot. They did it with authority.
But the mood dimmed in the third term. Star forward Georgia Gall limped from the ground with an ankle injury, a worrying sight on an otherwise dominant afternoon. Melbourne had just begun to rip the contest away; now they must wait to learn the cost.
Carlton arrived with intent and matched Melbourne’s intensity for the first half. The Blues, 4-1 heading in and eyeing their own top-four credentials, were spirited around the ball and hung in on the scoreboard.
Then the dam burst.
Melbourne piled on four unanswered goals in a ruthless third-quarter burst that broke the game open. Olivia Purcell drove the surge, bossing the midfield with 26 disposals and hammering home two majors as the Demons put the result beyond doubt.
Tyla Hanks was everywhere. Her 32 disposals and one goal underlined the gulf in class once Melbourne clicked, though Gall’s injury came as that dominance peaked.
By the final term, the contest was done. The Demons controlled tempo, Carlton’s resistance fading. There was still room for a moment to savour: Jorja Livingstone marked her debut with a goal in the last quarter, a neat exclamation point on Melbourne’s sixth straight win.
For the Blues, it’s a second consecutive defeat that dents their top-four push. Claudia Whitfort fought to keep them in it, racking up 24 disposals in a typically industrious display, but she could not turn the tide.
Melbourne walk away as the league’s only unbeaten side. Their football looks ominous. Their immediate concern, though, is Gall’s ankle and what it means for the weeks ahead.
Cats explode in third-term blitz
At Victoria Park, Geelong produced a different kind of statement – and a highlight reel that will run all season.
The Cats brushed aside a winless but stubborn Collingwood outfit 14.6 (90) to 7.7 (49), sealing a fifth straight victory and tightening their grip on a top-eight spot.
It wasn’t all smooth sailing. With Geelong expected to roll the Magpies, the script briefly flipped when Collingwood levelled the scores just minutes after half-time. For a side sitting 0-5, it was a jolt of belief and a warning for the visitors.
Geelong’s response was brutal.
The Cats flicked a switch and unleashed an electrifying third quarter, slamming on six goals to storm 31 points clear at the final change. Collingwood simply couldn’t live with the surge.
In the middle, Nina Morrison (30 disposals), Mikayla Bowen (29 disposals) and Georgie Prespakis (12 clearances) took control. They hunted the ball, surged it forward and turned the game into a training drill on their terms.
Then came the moment that will be replayed for months.
Aishling Moloney gathered and launched from halfway, her kick tumbling forward. The ball bounced. Then bounced again. It kept skidding, gathering speed, and somehow slipped through for a goal. A goal-of-the-year contender born from audacity and a friendly deck.
Moloney finished with three majors, while Chloe Scheer added four as Geelong tightened the screws in the last quarter, keeping Collingwood goalless to close out a 41-point win and move to 5-1.
The Magpies remain winless at 0-6, but they did find a bright spot in a tough season. Half-forward Olivia Lewis, a late call-up on Saturday morning with Bri Davey ill, kicked a goal on her AFLW debut after switching codes from Super Netball’s Melbourne Mavericks to Collingwood.
It was a fleeting moment of joy on a harsh afternoon.
Geelong stride on with five in a row and a forward line brimming with confidence. Melbourne sit unbeaten at the summit. As the season tightens, the question is no longer who can win on their day, but who can live with these two when they go full throttle.
