Suns sisters chase Olympic dreams, will sit out 2023 season

GOLD Coast sisters Maddi and Teagan Levi will sit out another AFLW season after committing to rugby sevens at least until the end of the Paris Olympics.

With the Olympics taking place in late July-early August 2024, there remains hope that the talented couple will skip the AFLW preseason and compete for the Suns after the Games.

Teagan was drafted in 2021 with pick #6 — the first Queensland-born player selected in that draft — but has yet to make her AFLW debut, which has been called inactive for seasons six and seven.

Older sister Maddi was drafted the year before and played eight out of nine games in 2021 and impressed with her athleticism and power both up front and in midfield.

She was also inactive for both seasons in 2022.

– Sarah Black

CAITLIN GREISER, HARRIET CORDNER AND NAT PLANE

THE G TRAIN has pulled into Richmond Station.

A three-way trade has seen the leading scorer of the AFLW 2020 Caitlin Greiser Move from St Kilda to Richmond, with wanton Tigers defender Harriet Cfalter Transition to Carlton and first blues winger nat plane Moving to the Saints.

How broken women.aflGreiser was keen to move to Punt Road, where a full-forward spot became vacant following the retirement of Aussie Courtney Wakefield.

Richmond has also parted ways with pick No. 14, which ended up in St Kilda.

That pick could eventually see the Saints’ leading scorer of Season 7 Jesse Wardlaw being backed from Brisbane.

The forthcoming Supplementary Draft is for older players only and clubs are not required to participate if their lists are full.

Cmapper sat out season seven after tearing her cruciate ligament in the opening rounds of season six and Carlton will be their third club after signing the former Melbourne soccer player as a rookie for the first-ever season.

Plane has played 36 games for the Blues in seven seasons, including all 10 in Season 6. But she only managed five in the second half of the year, which was called a contingency for the remaining five games.

	won	Lost
carlton	Harriet Cfalter	nat plane
Richmond	Caitlin Greiser	Harriet Cfalter Dial #14
St Kilda	nat plane Dial #14	Caitlin Greiser

– Sarah Black

Jennifer Dunne

BRISBANE have signed one of the biggest names in Gaelic football, Dublin-based Jennifer Dunne, as a rookie for the next two seasons.

In the midst of a tricky off-season that has seen Emily Bates and Greta Bodey head to Hawthorn and Jesse Wardlaw and Lulu Pullar requested a swap, Dunne’s signing is a coup for the club.

Renowned for her athleticism and skill, Dunne will also bring the Lions a physicality few Irish players come to Australia with and will join compatriot Orla O’Dwyer in Brisbane.

“Jen is someone we’re dying to bring on board because of her team success so early in her career,” said Brisbane head coach Craig Starcevich.

“She is incredibly athletic; her physicality and decision making is something we think translates beautifully to the AFL and we can’t wait to work with her. Coming from Ireland we know it will be a transition for her but we think she is really well placed with someone like Orla who has been in her shoes to help through the transition.”

– Gemma Bastiani

KODI JACQUES

ESSENDON has landed a surprise acquisition by trading with Richmond-based small forward Kodi Jacques.

In return, the Tigers win the Bombers’ second-round pick (currently No. 27) for the upcoming Supplementary Draft.

Jacques is a first Tiger to come through the club’s VFLW program and Bendigo Thunder.

The 22-year-old – who can also rotate through midfield when needed – has played 26 games in her three AFLW seasons but struggled to hold her place as the Tigers climbed the ladder and appeared in four games out of a possible 12 season seven.

The Tigers had only made two roster changes up to that point – the deletion of Hannah Burchell and the retirement of Courtney Wakefield – and are now sitting at 31 players, one over the limit.

Current Tigers Harriet Cfalter has been linked with Carlton, Maddy Brancatisano is likely to move to the Gold Coast, while two forwards – Caitlin Greiser and Courtney Jones – have good chances of ending up at Punt Road, meaning the Tigers could potentially will not occur draft.

For the Bombers, Jacques is the second signing of the player movement phase, having secured North Melbourne defender Brooke Brown via PSP. Your list is at 32 and needs to come down to 30 as well.

– Sarah Black

AMY FRANKLIN

RISING Fremantle forward Amy Franklin has requested a swap after two seasons on the Dockers list.

Franklin are understood to want to join city rivals West Coast but it remains to be seen how the deal will go through as a third club may need to be brought in.

The Supplementary Draft for mature players means picks have less value than in years past, with direct player swaps appearing to be the dominant mechanism for trades during this period.

Franklin, 20, is a childhood Eagles fan and a close friend of West Coast’s Charlie Thomas.

If the trade is successful, she could be a long-term spearhead for the club, working alongside Ella Roberts, Kate Bartlett and Aimee Schmidt.

“It’s a shame that Amy has decided not to continue the second year of her contract with the club,” said AFLW director of football Bob Murphy.

“We believe the Freo family have invested a great deal of time and resources into ‘Franky’ so our aim now is to ensure the club gets the best return on this investment.”

– Sarah Black

STEPH CHIOCCI, JAIMEE LAMBERT, TARNI WHITE, GRACE CAMPBELL, and KATE SHIERLAW

INAUGURAL Collingwood captain Steph Chiocci and teammate Jaimee Lambert are now Saints, Tarni White and Grace Campbell Pies and Kate Shierlaw a Roo.

As marked by women.afl On Friday morning, the three-club, five-player mega trade opened the AFLW Sign and Trade period with a bang.

North Melbourne also traded their first-round pick (15) to Collingwood in the upcoming Supplementary Draft, while the Magpies traded their second-round pick (31) to the Saints as part of the deal.

Chiocci was selected with the No. 11 pick in the 2016 draft and is one of the longest-serving captains in the competition, but a longer contract offer with the Saints for the 34-year-old is seen as a key factor in the decision move.

Lamberta three-time best and fairest at Collingwood, has often been the target of opposing clubs, with Hawthorn in particular chasing the dynamic midfielder last year.

The die-hards Campbell suffered a cruciate ligament rupture at the end of July, which ruled her out of season seven. She played mainly in midfield for first club Richmond before appearing as a centre-forward with the Roos.

key forward Schierlaw34, could be the missing piece of the puzzle for North Melbourne, who have been constantly tinkering with their attack as they push into the top step of the ladder.

She is the partner of Kangaroos skipper Emma Kearney, who have both competed in opposite training nights for years and live in the north west of the city while St Kilda is based in the south east.

midfield player White made headlines as one of the first 18-year-old draftees to actively nominate another state and choose to move from Queensland to Melbourne to play football.

	won	Lost
Collingwood	Tarni white Grace Campell First round selection (NM)	Steph Chiocci Jaimee Lambert Second round selection
North Melbourne	Kate Shierlaw	Grace Campbell First round selection
St Kilda	Steph Chiocci Jaimee Lambert Second Round Pick (Coll)	Tarni white Kate Shierlaw

– Sarah Black

Courtney Jones

GOLD Coast forward Courtney Jones is requesting a trade back to Victoria due to family reasons.

The 22-year-old is said to have been very happy with the Suns and originally planned to continue, but her family is her top priority in this particular situation.

Jones began her career at Carlton, where she made her debut in her third season on the list and played nine games for eight goals in her sixth season.

She then joined Gold Coast for the seventh season, again scoring eight goals from nine games.

The Suns will work to find a suitable home for Jones via a trade.

– Sarah Black

JESSE WARDLAW AND LULU PULLAR

BRISBANE have confirmed star striker Jesse Wardlaw and rising defender Lulu Pullar will seek a deal with the club in the coming weeks, with the pair both expected to end up at Victorian clubs.

Wardlaw, who has been linked with St Kilda, was the competition’s leading scorer last season aged 22 and played a key role in the Lions’ first Premiership in 2021.

“Jesse was a very valued member of the Brisbane Lions who has risen through the ranks through our academy. She will always have a place here in Brisbane,” said Breeanna Brock, Lions director of women’s football.

“As a homegrown talent, we would have loved Jesse to stay with the Lions. On behalf of everyone in Brisbane I would like to thank Jesse for everything she has done for our club and we wish her all the best in her future endeavours.”

The forward has scored 47 goals in her 49 career games and missed just one game in the Lions’ seventh season, in which she advanced to a fourth Grand Final.

Meanwhile, Pullar, an off-the-field doctor, is looking to relocate to Victoria to pursue other career opportunities alongside her foot.

“Lulu has informed the club that she would like to continue her football career with another AFLW club while pursuing employment opportunities in Melbourne,” said Brock.

“We wish her every success in her next chapter, not only in her football career but also as a first-year doctor.”

SIGNED, SEALED, DELIVERED All PSP moves as they happened

women.afl expects Pullar to be signed by North Melbourne.

The AFLW Trade and Sign period begins Friday and runs through March 20th.

The pair have left the club alongside Emily Bates and Greta Bodey in recent weeks, with the latter duo ending up at Hawthorn via the priority signing period.

– Gemma Bastiani