WAFLW Captain Selected For Showdown With SA

Kate Orme has been named captain of the WAFLW side to play South Australia this weekend at the Adelaide Oval.

Claremont’s Jack Schwarze will coach WA for the second successive season and is delighted for Orme, who will lead her state for the second year in a row after a player vote.

“It is a credit to Kate and the respect she has among the playing group to be selected as skipper again,” Schwarze said.

Orme, who is coach of WA Football’s U16’s female program, also played seven games with the West Coast Eagles at AFLW level.

Schwarze has high hopes for the group on Saturday.

“I can’t help but feel excited and very confident in the current squad that we have,”

“We have some returning players from last year’s State team plus most of these girls played together in the recent All Stars match vs U18s where they were very impressive.”

Schwarze explained how tough it was to finalise the 22 player travelling party.

“Difficult in the sense that the quality across the WAFLW this year has risen dramatically,” he said.

“But also a challenge because this game is much earlier in the season.

“Last year we had three to four rounds to get a gauge of who was performing then a further four weeks of training.

“This year we had to select the initial squad after Round 1 and the process has been made easier by having Trent Cooper as the Chairman of Selectors to challenge our thinking and add a different perspective and a wealth of knowledge.

“Last year we selected a squad of around 32 but still added players later.

“This year we have started with a smaller squad of 21.”

The WA coach has scouted South Australia.

“We are using our learnings from last year, our knowledge of SA and the current form of these players in the WAFLW to guide our selection,” Schwarze said.

“There are many incredible players missing out at the moment which is challenging to find the best mix but also exciting to watch the group come together.

“SA played a game against the VFLW, which on one hand is an advantage for them to build cohesion, but on the other hand we’ve been able to have a good look at their squad, how they’re likely to play and who is in good form.”

Schwarze, a two time WAFLW Premiership coach, has a passion for this WA side to succeed.

“I feel so privileged to have the opportunity to coach this state team again and play my role in showcasing women’s footy,” he said.

“One day the growth of women’s footy will reach a plateau but that moment is not yet here, so I get to continue to witness first-hand how good these female players are becoming.

“But as much as we love the opportunity this game brings, the message has been that we are not just going over to Adelaide to improve, we are going there to win.”