TWENTY-TWO wins on the trot. And just one more victory away from equalling a feat that beggars belief.

North Melbourne’s winning run, which commenced in week three of the 2024 NAB AFLW Season, is on the verge of entering the history books should they notch up one more win over the plucky St Kilda at North Hobart Oval this coming Sunday.

Knock off the Saints, and the Roos’ stretch of wins goes level with the 23 straight won by Geelong between 1952-53 in the then-VFL. A win over the Hawks the following week would make Darren Crocker’s dominant outfit the most successful outright in terms of consecutive victories, men’s or women’s side.

It’s important to preface that they certainly aren’t invincible. No team ever is. But as the Roos’ seemingly endless triumphs grow en route to a tilt at back-to-back premierships, as too does the gulf between them and the rest of competition, which is now at the point where they are head and shoulders above any other team in the comp.

So what is it exactly that makes the Roos so good? If only it were that easy to answer.

Maybe it’s as simple as the one-two punch of Ash Riddell and Jas Garner that has opposition midfielders shaking in their boots. Perhaps it’s the supreme organisation of their entire squad drilled into them through the coaching of Crocker and co. Maybe, going a little deeper, it’s the top-tier fitness which allows them to run well over the top of their opposition to score, on average, just under four final-quarter goals per game.

Or is it the top-tier personnel on-field on each line, the gameplan concocted at formation, the environment enabling players to thrive, the list build and savvy recruiting, the near-unchanging line-up each week, the sheer scoring power and swathe of experience …

Well, there are a multitude of reasons as to why the Roos have seemed untouchable over the past two seasons. Let’s take a look at just a few.

The power

It’s one thing sitting pretty on top of the ladder and leading the majority of key statistics across the entire competition, but it’s another entirely when you see just how dominant North Melbourne is over their rivals.

This is most notable in the simplest of stats: disposals. Averaging 325.7 per game (the league average is 255 in 2025), the Roos are so supreme at accumulating possession that the next-best average is the second-placed Melbourne at 272.5. For North, that’s an average of 50 disposals more per game than one of their most credible threats.

What’s most alarming is the average opposition differential per game in that statistic. From their 10 games this season on average, the Roos win the disposals count by 88.2. When it comes to uncontested possessions, that differential sits at +69.8 and highlights just how prevalent — and for the time being, unmatchable — their outside style of play is.

That lofty differential isn’t exclusive to just winning the ball however, but is a correlation of it. More disposals means more forward entries, and ergo, more opportunities at goal. Against their opposition this season, that differential sits at 21.4, and in turn the average number of goals per game sits a smidge under 11; five more than the league average.

North Melbourne’s sheer dominance by the numbers (as of round 10, 2025)

Scarily for the rest of the competition, they’re only getting better. When their streak began last season, their average winning margin per game sat at 41 points with an average score a tick over 58 points. This year from nine games, both metrics have ballooned out to a 50.3-point winning margin and an average score of 73.4.

Defensively, they’re just as sound. The Kangaroos have conceded just 239 points from nine games (less than four goals per game), and are equally as prolific when punishing on turnover, with a whopping 48.6 points scored on average from that source per game.

One of the few averages where North isn’t ranked as highly is tackles, sitting below the league average on 67 per game, ranked 14th overall. But you don’t need to tackle if you’re winning so much of the ball. Same comes for average rebound-50s, for which they chart last.

The personnel

Generally speaking though, to get such outstanding numbers on the stats sheet, you need equally prolific players. It’s easy to attribute North Melbourne’s successes solely down to the likes of long-serving stars Ash Riddell and Jas Garner, yet focussing on just those two stars would discount the terrific team around them.

Yes, Riddell is first in the league for disposals (374), inside 50s (58), contested possessions (147), uncontested possessions (227) and groundball gets (112) as she firms towards securing the league’s highest individual honour.

But her inside work would be for nought if the run of Tess Craven and Amy Smith weren’t there to drive the Roos to the outside; the crux of their gameplan which has seen them dominate over the generally contested styles adopted by teams in their formative years.

Garner is barrelling towards becoming the first player in the AFLW to kick 100 goals, however she is one of three Roos alongside Blaithan Bogue (18) and Tahlia Randall (17) in the competition’s top-five leading goalkickers this season.

And with defence always overlooked in the conversation in general, let’s not forget that the Roos have only conceded 239 points this season. That’s due to both the often unsung defenders — think Eliza Shannon and Jasmine Ferguson — and experience of generals Libby Birch and Emma Kearney getting the job consistently and working terrifically in a team-led defence.

The list build initiated all those years ago sees North Melbourne as the most seasoned team in the competition with an average age of 27.5 — often the sweet spot for footballers coming into their prime in the men’s competition — and the second-most experience in terms of games played (54.8).

Compare that experience against the young Gold Coast, whose list profile sits at an average age of 24.4 and games played at 30.6. With the length of the AFLW season, currently at 12 games plus finals, and the Roos have roughly another two seasons worth of experience under their belt. Simply put, there’s no substitute for experience.

The precision

If it is to come down to a single facet beyond the experience of their personnel, it would arguably be the Roos’ unrivalled discipline. That alone has served as the impetus for every other aspect of their game to flourish, and subsequently enhanced by bonafide stars.

Week after week, the well-oiled machine in royal blue and white knows exactly what they’re doing from an individual sense, and how to execute their gameplan on a team front. Their skill with ball in hand while doing so — boasting the best disposal efficiency of 68 per cent, again a byproduct of their discipline — has made them near untouchable.

It’s meant they’ve rarely found themselves challenged significantly on the scoreboard, with Adelaide giving them two single-figure frights last season, but those are anomalies. This year, their smallest winning margin is 29 points against Brisbane while on the road.

Crocker’s outfit appears so well-drilled and so in-tune with both individual and team roles, that even if an opposition is to put a chink in its seemingly impenetrable armour, they are still strong enough to make up the exposed area in other facets.

Take away their stoppage power, they’ll still cut you to ribbons on turnover when you do get your hands on the ball. Beat them in uncontested possessions, and they’ll roll up the sleeves and smack you on the inside. Shut out Riddell, you’re still left with Garner.

That is but a snippet of what has made North Melbourne the powerhouse in the AFLW that it is today, but it tells enough of a story as to how dominant the Roos really have become as they inch ever-closer towards a historic feat not seen in over 70 years.

Package that up with their A-grade talent, their style, their discipline and all the nuts and bolts in-between, and it’s more than enough to signal that North Melbourne is bounding towards something unbelievable.