GEORGIE PARKER: Three key changes to fixture, the ball and pay that could take AFLW to the next level

The AFLW is in it’s 10th season; young enough to still be tinkering with things, but old enough (and established enough), to start thinking about the next step and create improvements.

The foundations are there, but the league still feels like it’s holding itself back in some areas. If I had the keys for a day, here are the three things I’d change.

1. Timing of season

The AFLW is stuck in a strange spot in the calendar. As the final few rounds play out it feels like it competes against footy fatigue.

With AFL over after a marathon season, fans are burnt out, goal posts come out of local clubs to be replaced by drop in cricket pitches, and attention quickly shifts to cricket and spring racing.

Contrast that with the NRL and NRLW. Watching the Broncos win both grand finals on the same day was special — the men and women’s competitions complementing and completing each other well. That synergy is powerful for fans and clubs alike — imagine the celebrations last night!

The AFLW deserves that same energy. Instead, its scheduling often leaves it feeling like an afterthought. I have so much empathy for the women who have been unfairly shifted and shafted from season to season, but this timing still doesn’t feel right.

Having it align more closely with not just the AFL, but the feeder competitions (VFLW, WAFLW and SANFLW) would help it shine brighter — and avoid it fizzling out.

2. Size of the ball

When the AFL introduced the size 4 ball for AFLW, the decision was based on hand size research.

The size of the hand in ratio of the ball is on par with the men’s ball ratio. Technically, it makes sense, but practically, it doesn’t.

A smaller ball gets pushed around more in the wind. It doesn’t travel as far. It changes the rhythm of the game in ways that make it harder for AFLW to mirror the men’s competition. And like it or not, part of winning over rusted-on men’s AFL fans is about familiarity.

It’s the same reason the NRLW feels so palatable to men’s fans — it looks the same as the NRL, just played at a slightly different pace. The AFLW needs that because right now the AFLW structure (less players on a field), scores (much less game time), style and skills often don’t match what many have been used to watching in the AFL, leading to criticism.

A full-sized ball would go further, look cleaner, and make the game more recognisable to casual fans who are comparing it to what they already know.

3. Tiered pay system

Right now, AFLW contracts are locked into a tiered system: two Tier 1 players , six Tier 2, six Tier 3, and everyone else is Tier 4, with some wiggle room for Additional Service Agreements.

A simple structure put in place when little money was being spent. I was paid about $10,000 seven years ago, with a little bit of money to relocate. On paper, that ensures every club is structured the same, but in practice, it creates bottlenecks.

A handful of players can make a living, a group sit in the middle depending on age and circumstance, and the rest juggle second jobs.

More importantly, it limits player movement. Why would a Tier 2 player at North Melbourne, move to another Victorian club if they’re just going to remain at Tier 2? There’s no real incentive.

The better model? A straight salary cap. Let clubs decide how they want to spread their money.

Some might stack their list with a few stars; others might share the load more evenly.

Either way, it opens up the market, gives players more choice, and professionalises the competition further.

AFLW is growing, but growth can’t just be about more teams, more rounds AND more games.

It’s also about refining the product and making it better for players, making it more enticing for fans, and more sustainable for clubs.

These three changes aren’t silver bullets, but they’d be a big step towards making AFLW the competition it deserves to be.