Two finals contenders have a chance to damage the hopes of the other when Coorparoo and University of Queensland clash at Giffin Park in Round 7 of the Bond University QAFLW.
After six rounds, the Kings and Red Lionesses look to be in a battle for fourth to sixth positions with Aspley and Wilston Grange. Neither side will be too worried about its recent lack of wins, both winning one of their last four, as long as they can keep beating the bottom clubs and score enough wins against the others in the peloton.
UQ’s side is one of the most stable in the competition and makes just two changes from the team that pushed Aspley hard in Round 6, those being the return of defenders Finn Davies and Bailey Cooke.
The eight changes made by Coorparoo are a combination of covering for injuries to Madi Goodwin and Kaitlyn Zelinski, and celebrating the return from injury of some key personnel. Chelsea Chesterfield, Lucy Schneider and Enah Dešić are again available to bolster the forward, midfield and back lines respectively. Forwards Tilayna Nissen and Chloe Haines return from injury, while Stacey Anderson and Aoife Clifford will provide strength and agility.
Chelsea Winn played 29 matches for Coorparoo from 2021 to 2023 before heading to Yeronga where she starred in the centre of the field and won a place in the 2024 Bond University QAFLW Team of the Year. This Saturday, Winn returns to her former club to take on an opponent against whom she has a very happy goalscoring record: seven of her 13 career goals have been against the Red Lionesses.
The problem for Winn and her fellow mids will be to find a way through a UQ defensive wall that is leading the league for intercept marks and has the physical size to match up on the Coorparoo half-forward line.
The emergence of Davies and Sammy Snowden in the last line of defence has allowed Jessi Henning to push up to centre halfback where she can spoil attacks before they get too dangerous. Davies and Henning played for the Lions Academy and Queensland Under-18s respectively; Snowden is increasingly looking like the defender that those youth programs missed.
Henning may be given primary responsibility for keeping Haines under control, while Anneliese Neary and Annabel Coleman could be asked to curb the contested marking power of Nissen.
That leaves a potential one-on-one battle between UQ’s Camilla Satyasiv, a former dancer, and Coorparoo’s Carly Hess, a former World Cup-level trampolinist. Rare is the game that has a key match-up with the potential to be so aesthetically pleasing.
Elsewhere in Round 7:
• Maroochydore and Southport are the first pair of teams to meet for a second time in 2025 when they clash at Fishermans Road;
• Wilston Grange has an opportunity to heap pressure on the top three at the Canal against Bond University;
• The QAFLW version of the Battle of the Bruce begins when Moreton Bay hosts Aspley;
• and Morningside will dance with the Devils in the pale moonlight at home against Yeronga.
COORPAROO v UNIVERSITY OF QUEENSLAND
Saturday 31 May 2025, 4:45pm at Giffin Park, Coorparoo
Head-to-head: Played 25 - Coorparoo won 20; University of Queensland won 5
Head-to-head at Giffin Park: Played 11 - Coorparoo won 8; University of Queensland won 3
Last time they met: 13 Jul 2024 - University of Queensland 4.6 (30) d Coorparoo 1.8 (14) at South Pine Sports Complex.
MAROOCHYDORE v SOUTHPORT
Saturday 31 May 2025, 2pm at Neil Upton Oval, Maroochydore
Head-to-head: Played 8 - Southport won 7; Maroochydore won 1
Head-to-head at Neil Upton Oval: Played 1 - Southport won 1
Last time they met: 12 Apr 2025 (Round 2) - Southport 18.16 (124) d Maroochydore 2.0 (12) at Fankhauser Reserve.
BOND UNIVERSITY v WILSTON GRANGE
Saturday 31 May 2025, 2pm at Bond University Oval, Robina
Head-to-head: Played 14 - Bond University won 11; Wilston Grange won 3
Head-to-head at Bond University Oval: Played 7 - Bond University won 6; Wilston Grange won 1
Last time they met: 6 Jul 2024 - Bond University 3.8 (26) d Wilston Grange 1.3 (9) at Bond University Oval
MORETON BAY v ASPLEY
Saturday 31 May 2025, 3:45pm at Red Rooster Park, Burpengary
Head-to-head: first meeting
MORNINGSIDE v YERONGA SOUTH BRISBANE
Saturday 31 May 2025, 4:45pm at Jack Esplen Oval, Hawthorne
Head-to-head: first meeting
You can watch all matches in the Bond University QAFLW by visiting the Official AFLQ YouTube channel.