WE ARE officially halfway through the 2025 AFLW Fantasy season!
The halfway milestone has crept up quickly, and should encourage Fantasy coaches to take stock of their squads. Plenty of Fantasy teams are reaching a ‘complete’ stage, fielding a team of only experienced players with no rookies on field, and the impressive scoring reflects this.
On the back of massive scores from Kiara Bowers (164), Charlie Rowbottom (147), Zarlie Goldsworthy (145) and Ebony Marinoff (143), Fantasy scores reached an all-time high on the weekend. Mark R’s team ‘Sycamore AFLW’ posted a score of 1811 – eclipsing the previous season-high by 96 points!
With plenty of players consistently scoring well in 2025 and Fantasy teams relying less and less on rookies, coaches are looking to find more unique options than earlier in the year. Those with Lucy Wales (122), Anne Hatchard (118) and Sarah Goodwin (117) benefited massively from their low ownership, managing to separate themselves from those still fielding Zippy Fish (70) or Sierra Grieves (37) on their field. Finding ways to keep these types of players will prove more and more important as the season wears on, and should be kept in mind as coaches make their upgrades at this point of the season.
Top five price rises
1. Kiara Bowers (MID, $1,431,000): +$216,000
2. Ash Centra (MID, $765,000): +$194,000
3. Meara Girvan (DEF, $610,000): +$193,000
4. Sarah Goodwin (DEF, $853,000): +$178,000
5. Charlie Rowbottom (MID, $1,183,000): +$166,000
Top five price falls
1. Tyla Hanks (MID, $1,038,000): -$173,000
2. Elle Bennetts (DEF, $560,000): -$166,000
3. Mon Conti (MID, $1,192,000): -$155,000
4. Mikala Cann (MID, $684,000): -$149,000
5. Alice Edmonds (RUC, $831,000): -$127,000
Monique Conti during the AFLW Round four match between Melbourne and Richmond at Casey Fields, September 6, 2025. Picture: Getty Images
Top targets
Jasmine Garner (MID, $1,313,000, avg 117.8)
Last week it was an option, now it is an opportunity about to slip from our grasp. Garner is an absolute bargain price right now, and it won’t last long. The injured 51 from round three is about to disappear from her price cycle and the superstar will return to the uber-premium category of $1.5m-plus midfielders. For those still needing to complete their midfields, you should not hesitate to bring in a player that has gone 130-plus in three of her five games this season.
Sarah Goodwin (DEF, $853,000, avg 65)
The pre-season promise of Goodwin moving to the midfield has finally arrived in all its glory. Against the Suns on Sunday, Goodwin attended 15 CBAs and delivered in a big way for the Crows – her 27 touches and 10 tackles led to a game-high nine clearances, four of which came in the final-term comeback. While Caitlin Gould is injured and Hatchard required forward, Goodwin seems likely to be a mainstay in that midfield rotation for the coming weeks and could make the leap into the top five defenders. From the low price point of around 66, Goodwin is a handy defender option with promising match-ups against Sydney, Richmond and West Coast in the coming weeks.
Sarah Goodwin in action during Adelaide’s clash against Gold Coast in round six, 2025. Picture: Getty Images
Courtney Hodder (FWD, $874,000, avg 68)
No team has faced a difficult early-season fixture like Brisbane, lining up against first (North Melbourne), third (Hawthorn), fourth (Adelaide) and sixth (Carlton) across the first half of the season to leave them with an even ledger. But this leaves the Lions – a team who featured in the last three Grand Finals – with one of the easiest fixtures left this season. The Lions’ forwards seem likely to cash in, and none seem more likely than superstar Hodder. Off the back of a 79 and 108 in her last two, Hodder has hit form at a great time. Her tackling pressure and workrate up the ground are elite, and with a sprinkling of midfield time as coach Craig Starcevich continues to tinker with different mixes, it places her as a unique pick for AFLW Fantasy this week. With an ownership of under five per cent (and only one per cent in the top 100), Hodder could be a wonderful point of difference for coaches looking to make ground on the top ranks.
Sell
Bonnie Toogood (FWD, $805,000, avg 67.5)
If you only look at Toogood’s last three scores (73, 75, 80), you would think we are mad for considering her as a trade out option. However, it is what lies on the horizon which is very alarming: the ominous North Melbourne juggernaut. In the last month, these are the scores allowed by the Kangaroos to medium/tall forwards: Tara Bohanna 49, Taylor Smith 27, Dakota Davidson 37, Nell Morris-Dalton 22, Megan Kauffman 48, Ange Stannett 38, Bella Smith 27 and Tunisha Kikoak 25. Safe to say that there might be no tougher match-up in the AFLW. With that in mind, and with top-end premiums like Molloy less than $100k away, we highly recommend trading out Toogood (or at a minimum, seeing if you can get a look as a bench looper).
Bonnie Toogood celebrates kicking a goal during the match between Essendon and West Coast at Windy Hill in round two, 2025. Picture: Getty Images
Paxy Paxman (DEF, $708,000)
After the first month of the season, Paxman was the pick of the underpriced defenders, stringing together multiple 70-plus scores. However, for all the coaches who held over the past two weeks, it’s been far tougher sailing. Windy conditions, the return of some key reinforcements (like roaming half-back Sinead Goldrick), and low TOG second halves have scuppered the Fantasy scoring of Paxy. A 30 is very tough to stomach at this point of the season, so make out with the value made while you still can.
Tessa Boyd (DEF, $665,000, avg 63.7) and Blaithin Bogue (FWD, $628,000, 52.8)
These two North rookies have been lumped together because they represent something that sadly needs to be re-remembered every AFLW Fantasy season: don’t rely on rookies for too long. Boyd (39) and Bogue (19) both well underperformed expectations and requirements for this point of the Fantasy season, in what should have been a good match-up against Carlton. The Roos play against Essendon this week (in what should be another good match-up), but if you have the trades to spare, you should be making all efforts to take both Boyd and Bogue up to more established (and consistent) scorers. The same argument can be made for both Zippy Fish ($812,000, down $53k) and Sierra Grieves ($688,000, down $53k) for anyone still holding these midfielders.
Blaithin Bogue celebrates her goal in North Melbourne’s game against Collingwood in R4, 2025. Picture: AFL Photos
Top rookies
Ash Centra’s 108 against the Hawks was the first 100-plus score from the 2024 draft group, finally offering a glimpse of her talent on the AFLW stage. Consistent scoring is a challenge for most young players, and it would take a brave coach to play Centra on field while the rest of the competition pays up at their M5 position. But Centra is on track to make another $100k this week, giving much-needed life to our increasingly bare benches. For those looking at downgrade options for round seven, you may want to consider:
1. Lauren Young (FWD, $370,000)
2. Kayley Kavanagh (MID, $375,000)
3. Shanae Davison (FWD, $388,000)
4. Amelie Borg (DEF, $300,000)
5. Indiana West (MID, $300,000)
6. Matilda Banfield (FWD, $428,000)
Lauren Young and Mikayla Bowen in action during Port Adelaide’s clash against Geelong in round six, 2025. Picture: AFL Photos
Captains
For about the third time this season, it is time to pay our respects to one the ‘original’ uber scorers of AFLW Fantasy, with Kiara Bowers (164) putting on a vintage display against the Bombers. Apologies for missing her in the top five last week! This week, with a lot of the competition owning a red dot, the opportunity to loop VC and C unlocks some extremely high-scoring combinations. Pairing a North Melbourne midfielder (yes, that includes Mia King as well as Garner and Ash Riddell) as vice-captain with Bowers or Marinoff as your captain feels like a pretty sure-fire recipe for success. If you are a coach looking for a roughie, the red-hot form of Matilda Scholz cannot be disregarded, and she has now shown the ability to hit the 120-plus scores (while missing marks and shots at goal), and plays against a less restrictive ruck match-up this week in St Kilda.
No.1: Jasmine Garner (v Essendon, Friday 3.05pm AEST)*
No.2: Ash Riddell (v Essendon, Friday 3.05pm AEST)*
No.3: Kiara Bowers (v Carlton, Friday 5.05pm AEST)*
No.4: Ebony Marinoff (v Sydney, Sunday 3.05pm)
No.5: Kate Hore (v Gold Coast, Friday 1.05pm)*
Other options to consider: Ella Roberts (v GWS), Laura Gardiner (v Adelaide), Tyla Hanks (v Gold Coast)*, Charlie Rowbottom (v Melbourne)*, Matilda Scholz (v St Kilda), Mia King (v Essendon)*, Zarlie Goldsworthy (v West Coast)
