RACHEL KEARNS HELPED Geelong Cats to their first win of the season after the most dramatic of finishes in the Australian Football League Women’s [AFLW], while she also came out on top of a Mayo battle.
The Kelly Sisters, Niamh and Grace, are normally Kearns’ team-mates in the Green and Red set-up, but today they proved opposition on a West Coast Eagles side which also featured Aisling McCarthy of Tipperary.
Both teams were without a win coming into this Round Five clash, but Geelong prevailed after a last-gasp three-point victory at GMHBA Stadium.
The Eagles trailed for the entire match but clinched the lead with just 90 seconds remaining, before Geelong’s Darcy Moloney proved the match-winning hero 22 seconds later. The win was a first for the Cats’ new coach Daniel Lowther, and a first at their home ground since Round One in 2019.
Stunning goal by @NiamhK090 for @eaglesaflw after great combination work with her sister @grace_kelly94 in their Round 5 game with Geelong 💚#AWholeNewBallGame pic.twitter.com/atHXCnjeeu
— AFLW Ireland (@aflw_ireland) February 4, 2022
Although on the losing side, there was also a first for Niamh Kelly, as she opened her 2022 goal-scoring account with a cracking long-range finish. She was also named among West Coast’s best on the ground.
There was worry for McCarthy, meanwhile, as she was withdrawn through injury. The match report lists it as a wrist problem, while the club tweeted mid-game:
“Aisling McCarthy is walking off the field in the hands of medical staff. We’ll provide an update on Aish when one becomes available.”
Further news is yet to land.
Aisling McCarthy is walking off the field in the hands of medical staff.
— West Coast Eagles (@WestCoastEagles) February 4, 2022
We'll provide an update on Aish when one becomes available. #AFLW
“To get over the line late, and to find some resilience to hold our poise late in the game was good,” Geelong coach Lowther said afterwards. “It galvanised the group.
“To see them after the game, happy with the work they’ve put in and the style and method that we’re playing … was a real positive.”
West Coast boss Michael Prior, whose side impressed after three weeks in a Melbourne hub and absence from action for 14 days due to Covid protocols, added:
“We fought it out to the end, but I thought we started slow, which is disappointing. (But) I was really proud of the girls and what they’ve been through the last two weeks, to be right in the game come that last minute was a pretty good effort by them.”
The Eagles face St Kilda in their rescheduled Round Four clash on Tuesday, while there’s a host of other Irish involvement this weekend:
2022 AFLW Round Five Results / Fixtures
*all in Irish time
Friday, 4 February
Geelong Cats 4.3 (27) West Coast Eagles 3.6 (24)
Saturday, 5 February
GWS Giants v St Kilda - postponed
Brisbane Lions v Collingwood, 6.10am
Melbourne v Gold Coast, 8.10am
Sunday, 6 February
Western Bulldogs v Richmond Tigers, 2.10am
Carlton Blues v Adelaide Crows, 4.10am
North Melbourne v Fremantle Dockers, 6.10am
Tuesday, 8 February
St Kilda v West Coast, 6.10am
Irish players involved in the 2022 AFLW season
- Orla O’Dwyer (Brisbane Lions / Tipperary)
- Aisling McCarthy (West Coast Eagles / Tipperary)
- Grace Kelly (West Coast Eagles / Mayo)
- Niamh Kelly (West Coast Eagles / Mayo)
- Aileen Gilroy (North Melbourne / Mayo)
- Rachel Kearns (Geelong Cats / Mayo)
- Sarah Rowe (Collingwood / Mayo)
- Aishling Sheridan (Collingwood / Cavan)
- Cora Staunton (GWS Giants / Mayo)
- Bríd Stack (GWS Giants / Cork)
- Áine Tighe (Fremantle / Leitrim)
- Sinéad Goldrick (Melbourne / Dublin)
- Lauren Magee (Melbourne / Dublin)
- Ailish Considine (Clare / Adelaide Crows)
Alongside TG4′s weekend coverage on Saturday (5.15pm) and Sunday (11.15am), you can stream every game live on the AFL Women’s official app and the AFL Live app.
