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Port Adelaide have locked in an AFLW preliminary final berth against North Melbourne after pipping Hawthorn by a point, while Adelaide defeated Fremantle.
THEY SAID IT: "Shattered is the feeling. We had 22 more inside 50s, four more scoring shots and we lost another final. Gutted." - Hawthorn coach Daniel Webster couldn't believe his team coughed up a 22-point final-quarter lead in their 7.8 (50) to 6.13 (49) semi-final loss by just one point to Port Adelaide.
THE MOMENT: With scores level and just 90 seconds remaining on the clock, Port Adelaide's Sachi Syme gathered the bouncing ball and set sail for home from 25m out. Her shot missed, but the point proved to be enough for Port to get over the line.
TALKING POINT: After captain Ange Stannett's campaign ended before it started when she injured the anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee early in the pre-season, Fremantle finished the season with fill-in skipper Hayley Miller suffering a right patella tendon injury. Miller hobbled off the ground in the second term of her team's 7.7 (49) to 1.6 (12) semi-final loss to Adelaide before returning - valiantly but clearly hampered - after halftime, stationed in the goal-square. "It (injury) is fairly significant," Dockers coach Lisa Webb said. "A patella tendon is obviously not nice. She's incredibly brave; she's always been a warrior for us. She just said, 'whatever I need to do, I'll stay out there as much as I can'. She said, 'put me in the cage', so we put her at full forward and she managed to fight it out."
STATS THAT MATTER: The Power pulled off the biggest final-quarter comeback in AFLW history when they came from 22 points down to beat Hawthorn. The Hawks won the inside 50m count 51-29, but their wayward 6.13 in front of goal cost them dearly.
PLAYER OF THE ROUND: Adelaide star Ebony Marinoff continued the blistering pace she has set throughout 2024, racking up 32 disposals (including 23 contested possessions), 12 tackles, eight clearances and a goal in her side's 37-point demolition of Fremantle.
INJURIES: H Miller (Fremantle, knee), M Breed (Hawthron, knee), Aine McDonagh (Hawthorn, hand)
WHAT'S NEXT: The season is over for Hawthorn and Fremantle, but it's preliminary final time for the four remaining teams. Port Adelaide will be aiming to notch their ninth win on the trot when they face unbeaten North Melbourne at Ikon Park on Saturday afternoon. A few hours later, Brisbane host Adelaide at Brighton Homes Arena.