The North Melbourne Tasmanian Kangaroos talked the talk and then walked the walk in 2020.
The Roos were a premiership fancy before round one, and lost just a solitary match for the shortened season, by two points to Melbourne in round one.
Coach: Scott Gowans
Leadership group: Emma Kearney (captain), Jasmine Garner (vice-captain), Britt Gibson, Emma King
2020 finishing position: First in Conference A, five wins, one loss, 227.2%. Qualified for a preliminary final against Carlton.
Best win: North Melbourne 5.4 (34) defeated Collingwood 5.2 (32), semi-final.
It was a nail-biting win over a dogged opponent in the team's first finals appearance. The Magpies skipped out to a 10-point lead at half-time before the Roos responded and weathered the frantic final minutes.
Best individual performance: Jasmine Garner is one of the favourites for the league best and fairest for a reason. Her match against Geelong was something special. Well held in the first quarter, she was instrumental in the Roos coming back from an 18-point deficit, and finished with 18 disposals, six marks, six clearances and three goals.
Club best and fairest candidates: Jasmine Garner, Emma Kearney, Ash Riddell, Jenna Bruton
Debutants: Ellie Gavalas, Aileen Gilroy, Abbey Green, Mia King, Vivien Saad, Sarah Wright
Most improved: It could only be Jasmine Garner. We hadn't seen the best of the Roo at AFLW up until this year, although she had put in a strong body of work at VFLW level. In conjunction with a move to the midfield, Garner's average disposals rose from 13 to 20 and total goals from five to eight.
Star recruit: A flood of Irish players made the trip across to Australia for the 2020 season, and one of the most effective was Aileen Gilroy. She slotted in well across half-back, where her speed, big kick and tough tackling were brought to the fore.
Unsung hero: Key defender Tahlia Randall has improved season on season since starting at Brisbane in 2017 as an 18-year-old. The key defender is often tasked with the opposition's biggest forward threat.
What worked:
- Having previously spent the vast majority of her AFLW career forward, Jasmine Garner was a lethal threat in the midfield. Her clearance work and booming kick was crucial in the Roos' success throughout the season.
- North Melbourne's midfield as a whole was comfortably the best in the competition. Having lost Jamie Stanton to Gold Coast, the Roos brought in top-10 pick Ellie Gavalas and regained a fully fit Ash Riddell. The depth was impossible to match, there was no let up for opposition sides as players rotated through.
Season in a song: Playing to Win (Little River Band & John Farnham). Coach Gowans was unequivocal in his pre-season proclamation the Roos were aiming for a premiership in 2020, and the players backed it up on the field.
Early call for 2021: North Melbourne should once again be a serious flag contender. It's a shame we didn't get to see the preliminary final battle against Carlton, it was shaping to be one of the matches of the year.
Season rating: 9/10
