WAFLW 2022 Season PreviewWednesday, February 16, 2022 - 5:49 PM - by Chris Pike

THE 2022 WAFLW Season is now just days away with Peel Thunder attempting to win a premiership hat-trick, Swan Districts trying to go one better, West Perth entering the fray and that's just the start of fascinating storylines to follow.

Not only are the Thunder looking for a third straight flag, Swans to make up for last year's losing Grand Final after being minor premiers and the Falcons playing their inaugural season, but there's intrigue for all seven clubs.

Subiaco have been one of the strongest WAFLW teams in the competition so far but yet to taste premiership glory while East Fremantle is determined to return to finals action, Claremont trying to be a genuine contender and South Fremantle still chasing that elusive first victory.

The WAFLW season begins this weekend with Peel Thunder in action against Subiaco in Mandurah on Saturday night where the home team will unfurl their premiership flag won in 2021.

South Fremantle will then host West Perth at Fremantle Community Bank Oval on Sunday with the Bulldogs searching for a first ever WAFLW win in their third season while the Falcons will be making their debut WAFLW appearance.

Then the round will wrap up with the Dhara Kerr Cup on the line with Claremont hosting Swan Districts at Revo Fitness Stadium.

PEEL THUNDER
Reigning premiers Peel Thunder are looking to win a three-peat on the back of their stunning run into last year's Grand Final and then knocking off the form team of the season, Swan Districts.

The Thunder will be banking on a lot of young depth while they will be boosted by the presence of Sabreena Duffy. She isn’t playing with Fremantle in the AFLW season this year which is to Peel's benefit while Ella Roberts is a young star on the rise.

She is expected to be one of the hottest drafted products for AFLW later this year so dual premiership coach Steve Markham has plenty of young talent to work with as they chase that third premiership.

"That's the past now so we reset and start this season just looking at playing Subi in Round 1. We hope we're ready to go and it should be exciting," Markham said.

"The hunger is definitely still there and the girls are thriving. They can't wait for Round 1, they've been working real hard on the track and are ready to run out and go again. Obviously we want to be competitive and challenge again, but we will just keep working and taking it one game at a time.

"We are well aware that we are hunted too, but we're still always trying to find ways to improve and get better. We'll have a new side that runs out so there's a lot of inexperience there but that brings enthusiasm as well. That will be exciting."

SWAN DISTRICTS
Swan Districts reached the Grand Final in the WAFLW competition last year on the back of being the dominant side during the home and away season, losing just the one game on the way to claiming top spot.

Swans have geared up for another tilt at the flag as well after the losing Grand Finals so far in WAFLW in 2019 and 2021.

The black-and-whites have recruited well securing dual Peel Thunder premiership player Demi Liddle while they have plenty of young talent including Jamie Henry who is expected to be a high AFLW draft pick.

Then there is Ashley Sharp who is part of the leadership group under new captain Jess Cox. Sharp is fresh off having a baby in November last year but is raring to go and will fire up in front of goals.

Coach Adam Dancey is setting his sights high for Swan Districts this year.

"It's my second year and there's lots of fun going on down at the club. There's new girls, new plans and it should be lots of fun. We're definitely chasing the flag again this year," Dancey said.

"We've got a different group, that's the word we'd use. We are a lot younger this year and we're looking to have a lot more speed so we can move the ball a bit quicker. 

"We're also one year and some of our 15 or 16-year-olds who played in a Grand Final are now 16 and 17. You take the wisdom and you hope that holds us in good stead at the end of the year."

SUBIACO
Subiaco had another impressive season in 2021 but couldn’t quite get to a second straight Grand Final, but they have a readymade recruit in Ellie Blackmore who returns after breaking her leg midway through the 2021 season.

They have picked up some impressive Perth Football League talent as well including Amy Mullholland, Hanna Dethlefsen, Tess Lyons and former Swan Districts star Nyra Anderson.

Hayley Corlett is another young player to watch out for at Subiaco and it's a second season in charge for coach Michael Farmer who is looking forward to seeing how the Lions can go.

"It's very early on and we've got Peel and Claremont straight off the bat in Rounds 1 and 2 so it's a good test to see where we're at. But you go into a season to play finals footy and to win the ultimate so that's our goal but playing consistent footy is going to be key for us," Farmer said.

"We've been fortunate enough to play in a few finals over the last few years but not quite get to the next level, but for us we're really excited about this year. We've retained a lot of players so we've got a core group who are really consistent with our messaging. I think it's going to be exciting.

"We've been able to recruit and we've got some exciting players from the Perth footy league to give us some really good depth, but also they are exciting with the way they play. 

"It will be exciting to see them play but the main thing was being able to maintain a lot of the key players from last year and having that consistency in messaging. It means that they are just going to benefit more and impact games for longer, and hopefully be more competitive."

CLAREMONT 
Big things are expected of Claremont in the 2022 WAFLW season under a new coach and with some impressive recruits brought into a team that did make finals in 2021.

Former Fremantle and West Coast AFLW player Brianna Green is on board having crossed to Claremont from East Fremantle with Claire Ortlepp and Tayla Thorogood both coming over from Subiaco, and Zoe Gillard also moving from the Sharks.

Mikayla Western, the sister of Fremantle's Joel, is another exciting Tigers talent to keep an eye out for and new coach Jack Schwarze isn’t afraid to set his sights high for Claremont in 2022.

"I'm definitely nervous but excited. It's been a really good pre-season, we're really happy with what we've been doing and the season can't come quick enough now so we're looking forward to Sunday," Schwarze said.

"We're here to challenge and take the next step forward. I've been really lucky with the list and we've retained really well, and added a few including a couple of girls from amateur clubs and coming up from Rogers Cup to add some strength and help us grow."

EAST FREMANTLE 
East Fremantle has long been a powerhouse of female football so it was a shock to see the Sharks not part of finals action in 2021, but they are setting sights on ensuring that doesn’t become a regular occurrence.

East Fremantle has a new coach in Matt Templeton for this season while they have a good blend of experience with leaders like Sharon Wong along with five players in the State 18s – Georgia Cleaver, Nadya Browne, Alli Nokes, Anjelique Raison and Alissia Schmiedgen.

Zipporah Fish is another player with huge potential with the Sharks and another of their stars, Ashleigh Gomes, is certainly expecting a strong bounce back season.

"The vibe at the club is huge coming into a new season in 2022, even though we've got a bye first round. We've got a new coach, Matt Templeton, and he's really brought the group that little bit closer which we didn’t think was possible," Gomes said.

"I guess you always want to say that you want to make finals and the Grand Final, but after last year when we didn’t make finals it's built that hunger in the stomach even more. 

"You want to make finals and win games, and this year is all about redemption. We want to prove to everyone that we can play finals and we can play great footy. It will be a great year."

SOUTH FREMANTLE
South Fremantle has done it tough in its first two WAFLW seasons and the Bulldogs are yet to taste a victory, but they will be keen to change that quickly in 2022.

The Bulldogs were thrown in the deep end to be part of the shortened season back in 2020 and then despite being significantly more competitive in 2021, they couldn’t quite get that elusive first victory.

South Fremantle will get that first chance against West Perth on Sunday led by captain Lauren Vecchio along with key players Liusaidh Gilchrist and Pia Durk, and rising star Aaliyah Ugle.

Vecchio loves the increased competitiveness of the WAFLW competition and is looking forward to the season ahead.

"I just love competitiveness. I like new challenges and the level of competition keeps improving so I just want to keep challenging myself as well," Vecchio said.

"We just have to let the work we did in pre-season take its place and I think we might be surprised with what we can bring to the table this season.

"The competition has definitely improved significantly and the work you have to put in now was very different to what it was a few years ago, but it's exciting times."

WEST PERTH
West Perth is the newest club in the WAFLW competition for 2022 and the Falcons will look to make an immediate statement on debut down at the port against South Fremantle this Sunday.

There is plenty of young talent at West Perth on the back of winning the Youth Girls Rogers Cup premiership in 2021, so there's plenty there to work with and build upon.

This season will be all about building for the future, but that doesn’t mean they can't be immediately competitive with exciting players like Teal Bennett and Elissa Price.

Inaugural Falcons coach Stephen Hazel is excited to be part of the WAFLW competition now.

"It's huge for our footy club and the northern corridor as a whole. For them to have a pathway to go to now for our female footballers is just really sensational. And it means the club has become one club and it's really good," Hazel said.

"We're as ready as we can be. You never can say you're 100 per cent ready because you don’t know what's going to happen on the days, but the girls are doing all the right things on the track and now we just have to wait and see.

"Obviously we're young but we've got a successful Rogers Cup group that's come through so they make up most of our group. They know what it takes and we've trained them over the last two years to be ready for league footy so hopefully they can step up."