The AFLW trade period is closing in. The times and dates haven’t been locked in, but are expected to be announced following key AFL meetings in early May.
Despite that, clubs are already deep in discussions with players about what the future holds and rumours are rife.
Putting specifics aside, here’s what all 14 AFLW teams need from the upcoming trade period.
More firepower inside 50
Erin Phillips once again was Adelaide’s most dangerous player inside 50 this year, kicking 14 goals.
She may play on again next year, but if she doesn’t the Crows have a big hole to fill.
They have the tools to replace her in the midfield, but inside 50 they would benefit from a key forward or marking target outside of impressive youngsters Ashleigh Woodland, Chloe Scheer and Eloise Jones.
This would also allow them to settle Chelsea Randall back into defence, given she spent most of the season forward.
A young key defender
The Lions just won the flag with an even line-up led by savvy veterans and talented youngsters.
They now need to start planning for the next generation, given the retirements of Lauren Arnell and Emma Zielke and given Kate Lutkins is turning 33 next year.
Zielke and Lutkins were key parts of their backline in 2021 and planning for the next generation should be a thought in the minds of the reigning champs.
Inside and outside midfield depth
Carlton came into 2021 as one of the premiership favourites, but it flew under the radar how much the losses of Chloe Dalton and Sarah Hosking would impact an already thin midfield group.
Elise O’Dea was brought in with the hope that she could fill that role inside, but she ended up mostly utilised inside 50.
With Katie Loynes now also out the door and Mimi Hill recovering from a torn ACL, Carlton has to be proactive in the trade period building out their midfield.
Maddy Prespakis can’t do it alone and the Blues can’t win a flag without the additional depth.
They have what they need down back and even if Tayla Harris leaves, they have a functioning forward line. The midfield depth however remains allusive.
A starting ruck
The retirement of 2020 All-Australian Sharni Norder makes this an easy one.
Collingwood must go out and find a ready-made replacement, given they are in their premiership window.
Thankfully, rivals Carlton have made that decision easy by cutting veteran Alison Downie. Whether she is their starting ruck come Round 1 or a secondary option, it makes perfect sense for the Magpies to throw her a lifeline.
The Magpies could also use additional targets inside 50, given they run a mostly pretty small forward line and Jordan Membrey’s injury.
They needed to push Ash Brazill forward in finals to provide an option between the arcs.
On-ball support
The Dockers are too heavily reliant on Kiara Bowers on-ball.
She led the team for inside 50s, handballs, kicks, tackles, clearances, contested possessions, metres gained and total disposals in 2021, highlighting just how dominant she was.
Fremantle must find her a partner in crime in the midfield who can stand up and share the load.
This would give them the one-two punch they need and potentially take them to the next level in the premiership race.
Anyone and everyone willing
Geelong should follow in the footsteps of what Richmond did 12 months ago and bring in as many AFLW standard players as they can get their hands on.
The winless Tigers gave up all of their draft capital, sans Ellie McKenzie at pick one, to bring in the likes of Harriet Cordner, Sarah Hosking, Sarah D’Arcy and Sarah Dargan and others.
It undoubtedly helped turn things around for the Tigers and the Cats should take a similar path given their young list, and the loss of a few veterans to retirement.
Quantity as much as quality is the path for the Cats in this off-season.
As above
When you go through a season winless, you have to change something.
Gold Coast was smashed by injuries and will be a better team in 2022, but they can’t be picky here.
It will be tougher for them to attract interstate players to Queensland meaning they will likely have to be proactive.
Any midfield help they can find for Jamie Stanton and Alison Drennan would go a long way.
Forward depth
Cora Staunton is a star and continues to have an impact, but she will be 40 come the next AFLW season.
She was the only Giant to kick 10 goals in 2021, though Rebecca Privetelli has the capacity to play deep forward and the return of Yvonne Bonner would help.
Still, the Giants have a strong midfield and need to build a forward line capable of taking advantage of it.
Deep forward target
Melbourne looked a different team in the second half of the year with Daisy Pearce anchoring and organising the forward line.
Suddenly they looked dangerous inside 50 and were free to play Eden Zanker in the ruck and on-ball.
Even if Pearce does play on in 2022, it would be wise for the Demons to invest in someone else to play that style of role.
It doesn’t have to be a genuine Tayla Harris style key forward, it could be a smaller player strong on the lead with Pearce-like positioning smarts.
Alyssa Bannan is likely someone who could develop into that role in time, but it could be worth targeting someone to step in next year.
A genuine key forward
This is the Tayla Harris landing spot.
If she isn’t returning to Carlton, it makes too much sense structurally for North Melbourne to not make a play for her, assuming they have the money and the flexibility around her boxing schedule.
North Melbourne has a deep, star-studded midfield and a backline that wants for nothing.
What they’re missing is a focal point inside 50. They didn’t have a player kick 10 goals in 2021, relying on Sophie Abbatangelo, Daisy Bateman and Daria Bannister inside 50.
Emma King can push forward, but every minute she spends forward is time she isn’t in the ruck, where she is best utilised.
They might decide not to pursue Harris, but a key forward like St Kilda’s Kate Shierlaw or Richmond’s Sabrina Frederick could be the final structural piece of the puzzle.
Rebound off half-back
It was fair to question where Richmond was at with their list build after a winless year one, but they have plugged a lot of their holes.
Harriet Cordner and Sarah D’Arcy have settled their backline, Sarah Hosking, Ellie McKenzie and a healthy Katie Brennan have given them the midfield depth they need and their forward line was already stacked.
What the Tigers could use is some additional rebound off half-back. Phoebe Monahan had a quiet season after a strong 2020 and the Tigers lack composure coming out of defence in general.
A classy ball-user across half-back or pushing through the wings should be high on their agenda.
Inside midfielders
The Saints have the core of their midfield sorted long-term. Georgia Patrikios is already a superstar and Tyanna Smith isn’t too far behind her. Rosie Dillon is also a handy player in rotation.
What the Saints need is a veteran leader to step in and their gun young pair as they grow and develop.
Patrikios and Smith are capable of winning the contested ball, but both are at their best on the fly and both have smaller frames that are more suited to the outside.
Like Downie and Collingwood, Carlton has dropped Katie Loynes into St Kilda’s lap and the Saints would be folly not to bring the bayside local in for a year to fill specifically this role.
Some excitement
The Eagles have a lot of work to do to become a team that can compete in finals. Getting star midfielder Dana Hooker back next year will certainly help in that regard.
They had a few breakout players this year in Mikayla Bowen, Parris Laurie and the Kelly sisters, but West Coast fans could certainly benefit from a few more players to get excited about.
Aisling McCarthy was one of the best recruits of last year’s trade period and the Eagles need to work similar magic this year.
They should use their early draft position to entice Victorian clubs, given state-based drafting means their draft numbers aren’t a huge deal.
Ready-made on-ball support
Ellie Blackburn almost singlehandedly dragged the Western Bulldogs over the line in the first month of the season – and was leading the W Awards early on because of it.
Blackburn and Kirsty Lamb need help in that midfield because they carried a disproportionate load in 2021.
Lamb (33) and Blackburn (29) led the team for clearances. The next best was first-year midfielder Jess Fitzgerald on 14.
Fitzgerald is a star of the future, but the Dogs may want to consider bringing in another veteran to help bridge the gap.