WAFLW Team of the Week – Round 9Tuesday, May 9, 2023 - 10:10 PM - by Chris Pike

WITH a draw between last year's grand finalists Claremont and East Fremantle as well as Swan Districts continuing its winning form, South Fremantle impressing further and Subiaco dominating East Perth, and it was tough to secure spots in the WAFLW Team of the Week once more.

There was no shortage once again of players putting their hands up for a place in the WAFLW Team of the Week for Round 9 following the weekend's action.

Round 9 in the WAFLW got underway on Saturday evening for the first game of the season at the WACA Ground with East Fremantle and Claremont doing battle in the second grand final rematch of 2023.

In the end, the two teams couldn’t be separated and finished evenly locked at 2.4 (16) apiece for the season's second draw.

The rest of the round took place on Sunday afternoon beginning with South Fremantle continuing its supremely impressive form by further consolidating second position with the 4.9 (33) to 2.1 (13) victory against West Perth at Joondalup's Pentanet Stadium.

Next up was the battle of the Leederville Oval co-tenants and Subiaco were once again able to keep East Perth goalless by securing the 6.11 (47) to 0.1 (1) win.

Last up on Sunday afternoon was Swan Districts making it four consecutive wins on the back of losing the first four games of the season by beating Peel Thunder 9.9 (63) to 5.4 (34) at Steel Blue Oval in Bassendean.

There were once again plenty of star performances across the four games and here's how the Round 9 Team of the Week came together.

WAFLW TEAM OF THE WEEK – ROUND 9

BACK: Claire Ortlepp (C), Evie Cowcher (PT)
HALF-BACK: Kahra Sprlyan (SF), Julia Uhe (EP), Madison Dodd (S)
CENTRE: Tiah Toth (S), Taylor Ferguson (WP), Jess Cox (SD)
HALF-FORWARD: Abbygail Bushby (SD), Olivia Wolmarans (S), Tanisha Anderson (PT)
FORWARD: Bethany Bond (SF), Courtney Zappara (SD)
FOLLOWERS: Ariana Hetherington (SF), Kloe Bassett (SF), Matilda Sergeant (C)
INTERCHANGE: Hanna Dethlefsen (S), Ebony Dowson (PT), Madeleine Goodman (EP), Emily Bennett (WP), Ella Slocombe (C)

Each week of the WAFLW season during 2023, we will be selecting a Team of the Week and here's how the side for Round 9 came together from the weekend's action.

The back-line in the Round 9 Team of the Week features Claremont's Claire Ortlepp and Evie Cowcher from Peel Thunder.

Ortlepp has put together a standout season at the defensive end for Claremont and she continued that form on Saturday evening at the WACA Ground. She finished with 17 touches and nine marks to earn a Team of the Week spot for a fifth time in eight games.

Cowcher battled hard for Peel despite Sunday's loss to Swan Districts. She had 19 possessions and seven marks to earn a place in the Team of the Week for a second occasion in 2023.

The half-back line is made up of South Fremantle's Kahra Sprlyan, East Perth's Julia Uhe and Subiaco's Madison Dodd.

Sprlyan has been one player instrumental in South Fremantle's rapid improvement this season. She had another 22 possessions in Sunday's win against West Perth and could have had an even bigger afternoon had it not been for three behinds.

Uhe earned a spot in the Team of the Week for a second time this season for East Perth and she had 17 touches, three tackles and two marks against Subiaco.

Dodd was once more instrumental in Subiaco's win against East Perth finishing with 18 possessions, four marks, three tackles and two inside-50 entries off half-back to be named to the Team of the Week for a second time.

There was again plenty of midfielders putting in performances to have them in contention for the Team of the Week. In the end, the on-ball positions went to West Perth's Taylor Ferguson, South Fremantle's Kloe Bassett and Claremont's Matilda Sergeant.

Subiaco's Tiah Toth and Swan Districts' captain Jess Cox are named on the wings while South Fremantle's Ariana Hetherington has once again claimed the ruck position.

Ferguson was named to the Team of the Week for a first time this season since joining West Perth on the back of delivering 21 possessions, five marks, three tackles and a goal.

In the same game, Bassett was outstanding for South Fremantle with another 27 disposals, seven inside-50 entries, four marks and three tackles to be named to the Team of the Week for a third time already in 2023.

Sergeant earned a spot in the Team of the Week for a third time in 2023 already and she had 18 touches, four marks, four tackles and a goal in the draw with East Fremantle on Saturday night.

Toth was outstanding again through the middle in Subiaco's win against East Perth to be named to the Team of the Week for a third time in 2023 on the back of 24 possessions, eight inside 50s, five tackles and three marks.

Cox continues to prove herself a tremendous captain at Swan Districts and in Sunday's win against the Thunder, she had another 20 touches, five inside-50 entries and four marks.

Hetherington has made the most incredible jump from basketball where she was a captain at the Rockingham Flames in the NBL1 West competition now playing WAFLW, and becoming the standout ruck in the league.

Hetherington had 25 possessions, 27 hit outs, five marks, two tackles and two inside-50 entries against West Perth on Sunday to be named to the Team of the Week for a fifth time this season.

The half-forward line for Round 9 features Swan Districts' Abbygail Bushby along with Subiaco second-gamer Olivia Wolmarans and Peel Thunder's Tanisha Anderson.

Bushby has made an immediate impact upon coming into the Swan Districts team in recent weeks. She was again a standout performer on Sunday with 22 disposals and three goals to be put in the Team of the Week for a second straight round.

Wolmarans was playing her second league game for Subiaco and played in her first victory. She starred in the forward-line by kicking two goals from 14 possessions and five marks.

Anderson continues to be a strong avenue to goal for Peel despite her team struggling at the moment this season. She kicked two more goals against Swan Districts on Sunday to go with nine touches, two marks and two inside-50 entries.

The players in the full-forward line are then South Fremantle's Bethany Bond and Swan Districts' Courtney Zappara.

Bond has been instrumental in the form of the Bulldogs this season thanks to her performances in the forward-line. She kicked another two goals in Sunday's win from 10 kicks, three marks and three tackles to be named in the side for a fourth occasion.

Zappara is proving to be a terrific option in attack for Swan Districts and she has been a big part in them putting together a four-game winning streak. She kicked three goals in Sunday's win from 11 disposals, six marks, three tackles and two inside 50s.

The five players on the interchange are Subiaco's Hanna Dethlefsen, Peel Thunder captain Ebony Dowson, East Perth's Madeleine Goodman, West Perth's Emily Bennett and Claremont's Ella Slocombe.

Dethlefsen spent more time in the forward-line in Sunday's win against East Perth for Subiaco and delivered 13 disposals, four marks, four inside-50 entries, three tackles and kicked two goals.

Dowson is the Thunder and is leading a team that is struggling in a lot of areas admirable off the half-back line. She has now been named to the Team of the Week five times after another 19 touches and two marks against Swan Districts.

It might have been another tough afternoon for East Perth against Subiaco but Goodman put in a standout showing ending up with 18 possessions and seven tackles.

Bennett earned her place in the Team of the Week for a second time so far this season after she had 21 touches, seven marks and seven tackles on Sunday against South Fremantle.

Slocombe had another tremendous showing for Claremont in the draw with the Sharks with 17 possessions, three tackles, three inside-50 entries and a goal.