“The Best Game of AFLW Football We’ve Seen”
In a game with plenty of narratives to open the 2021 account, Peta “Searle’s Girls” showed their class late, to hold their nerve against a very strong Western Bulldogs women’s side.
The Saints’ AFLW 2021 season opener proved to be a great measuring point for how the girls had developed from their inaugural season, holding on in a tight contest that would have most likely gone the other way last year. With a lot of close games going against them in 2020, the competitive Saints look to have grown even further, with this win setting the tone for the rest of the AFLW season.
INSPIRATION
Prior to Round 1, Unpluggered Podcast‘s Aaron McGrath asked Peta Searle what her message to the team would be on gameday, with the experienced coach revealing it would be all about how inspiring her charges are. It was fantastic to get a peek inside the St Kilda coach’s pre-game speech, with @StKildaFCW showing some clips on social media following the game. These girls are an inspiration for us all, not only the next generation of young female footballers but also for those who didn’t have the same opportunity in the past.
And, wow, didn’t they make us all proud last Saturday?
Back in the heartland, back to the footy ❤️ pic.twitter.com/BM7MZs02pw
— St Kilda FCW (@stkildafcw) February 3, 2021
It was the Saints’ young star, Georgia Patrikios, who set the tone, with her 23 classy disposals leading the club on the night. Last year’s AFLW leading goalkicker – the “G-Train” – Caitlin Greiser, kicked her first of two goals to open the scoring after just 20 seconds, while Darcy Guttridge also kicked two for the night – including the sealer – as the St Kilda side kicked their highest ever AFLW score. Unpluggered Podcast‘s Nick Splitter had no hesitation in calling this one, “the best game of AFLW football we’ve seen.”
And, of all people after the game, no one looked more proud then Western Bulldogs senior coach – St Kilda legend and another former Unpluggered Podcast guest – Nathan Burke. A fantastic photo of Nathan with his daughter Alice Burke – following her debut for the Saints – embracing post-game, perfectly encapsulates the essence of what AFLW is all about.
An early contender for sports photo of the year!
This pic is everything ? pic.twitter.com/s9fBDlYdFz
— Unpluggered Podcast ?⚪⚫ (@unpluggered) January 29, 2021
With a second round matchup against a dominating North Melbourne outfit looming, a perfect opportunity arises for the girls to play their natural game and see how they stack up against one of the competition’s best teams. Following the Kangaroos demolition job of Geelong in the first round, the Saints will be looking to be a much more competitive adversary, with plenty of confidence that they can get the job done if they play their best football.
Unpluggered Podcast chats with St Kilda Football Club State Recruiting Manager, Chris Toce, on their next episode:
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