AFLW Round 6: Brisbane Lions v Collingwood: Nanna Napping

3.35 EST Saturday 10^th March 2018

Moreton Bay Central Sports Complex

Yvette Wroby

 

I should never sit and watching footy on my comfy chair. It actually has a nickname all of its own.  It’s my ‘coma’ chair. Trying to catch up with the Adelaide v Fremantle game, I began dozing off, and luckily, I switched channels to at least be aware of the start of the Brisbane Lions v Collingwood game at 4.35pm Melbourne time.

Often when I go into an afternoon nap, it is deep, and I have the most intense dreams.  I thought I could hear, through the maze of my sleepiness Collingwood attacking and goaling – Christine Bernardi from a Caitlyn Edwards handball, Moana Hope from a pick up and Bernardi again running into an open goal.  When I finally came to full consciousness, I noted there were two points to Jasmine Garner in between.  It was all the Pies and it was only a few minutes into the game.  I was fully awake from here on in. Between the Fox Footy commentary and Tweets from Girls Playing Footy, I had a fun afternoon watching (and participating in) something special.

It was very quiet on the ground with the quick three Pies goals, and finally Sabrina Frederick-Traub marks in the goal square and put Brisbane on the board. Nat Exon followed soon afterwards. And then came the rain.  @WomenInSport Tweeted “Queensland – beautiful one-minute, torrential rain the next.”

The rain was coming in sideways. Scoring all but disappeared as everything and everybody is soaked.  I finally see my first umpire lasso.  I also saw Chloe Molloy handball to herself to get out of trouble.  I notice the first of the many weird sayings of the commentator: “…got planted like a tree when she kicked it.” My fave, Brittany Bonnici continues to be in everything and is my warrior princess, tough and rough. A free-flowing game has become scrappy.  Brisbane have shut Collingwood down, but they can’t make use of the ball either, as Bella Ayre gets a behind. I watch with awe as Molloy again hand passes to herself and it is a wonder to behold. From Molloy’s terrific work, Bernardi gets a chance to score but it doesn’t make the distance. There are no goals in the second quarter.

This Nanna is fully awake now. Collingwood’s Ruby Schleicher doesn’t come back after half time, having failed a concussion test. Bernardi continues her fine work getting the ball cleanly to Garner who gaols. Talia Randall hurts her hip in a contest. Frederick-Traub gets it forward to Katie Ashmore who is so close to the posts she could kiss them, and she sprays it. The Pies are lucky when Sophie Conway marks, but the ball is touched for a behind. Bernardi only scores a behind when Jamie Stanton defends well. Captain Emma Zielke is trying her heart out. Bernardi sparkling. Bonnici is everywhere and Molloy is so calm for such a young player.

The commentator amuses @GirlsPlayFooty and I with “We’ve already had a lot of rain, but that kick might bring more”.  Emily Bates kicks it out of bounds on the full moments later.

Meg Hutchins gets the only goal this quarter with a free on the boundary 50 out.  It is massive, and I think Collingwood have this game.

@GirlsPlayFooty and I start messaging when the commentator says for the third time this afternoon (re Georgie Parker from Brisbane): “Georgie Parker, not the Gold Logie winner….”.  Pies lead by 23 at the last break.

Again, @GirlsPlayFooty amuses me (Becca Haynes at work for this game) with #upsetwatch.  It then becomes a Twitter conversation when Almanac writer (I think…there are so many Smokie Dawsons) @smokiedawson notifies Fox Footy that there is rain on the camera. I respond: “Yep, so many advantages for #AFLW fans and players”. (Cranky Nanny emerges with thoughts of heat, thunder storms, poor lighting, rule changes etc etc). The camera lens needs wipers or proper cover. At least the rain eases and eventually we don’t have smudged viewing.

Zeilke manages a behind before Hope passes to Bonnici who gets the ball to Berdardi and the Pies are ahead by 28. I again pray that I’ll get my Western Bulldogs v Melbourne Grand Final in the hope of attending. (That wish is somewhat shaky later in the evening as the Dog’s lose to GWS and if Melbourne win tomorrow, and beat the Doggies next week, it’s goodbye to that dream too. (Please, please have a Melbourne based Grand Final game, I parochially wish.)

Moana Hope is having a great game and kicks her third.  Our commentator brings out the “Party Pies” line. Jess Wuetschner gets a behind before finally getting one from a Molloy mistake. Exon scores a behind.  Kate Lutkins gives a late goal to pull percentage back and Katie Ashmore finally brings the margin back to 13 points.  If this is the comeback, they have left it with 61 seconds to go.

“She (Ashmore) weaves through like a moped in traffic” we are told by Fox.

Wowser, me thinks at the end of this game. I watch as the happy Collingwood team spray gator sticky drink all over the three debutants.  Their smiles and happiness, is plain infectious.

I must be dreaming, I think, as I finish barracking for Collingwood in this afternoon’s game.  Collingwood aren’t going to make the Grand Final, but they are having fun shaking the tree and watching the teams fall where they may. It’s great to see their improvement.

 

 

Brisbane Lions                  2.2         2.4         2.6               5.9         (39)

Collingwood                      4.4         4.4         6.5               8.5         (53)

Goals: Brisbane Lions: Frederick-Traub, Exon, Wuetschner, Lutkins, Ashmore.

Collingwood: Bernardi 3, Hope 3, Garner, Hutchins

Best:  Brisbane Lions: Lutkins, Frederick-Traub, Bates, Gibson, Stanton

Collingwood: Bernardi, Garner, Molloy, Hope, Bonnici, Edwards, Duffin.

Crowd: 2600

Malarkey Votes: 3 Bernardi, 2 Garner, 1 Frederick-Traub