GWS star injured in AFLW win over Suns
GWS has surpassed the loss of Olympic gold medalist Chloe Dalton to register a 15-point AFLW victory on the Gold Coast at the Great Barrier Reef Arena.
Dalton starred in the opening half of Sunday's match, with the highlight bursting through the middle, giving Katherine Smith a goal in the second stint.
But Dalton, who won Olympic gold with the Australian rugby 7s team in 2016 and is also a former WNBL player, was kicked off the field shortly after due to a shoulder injury.
The Giants led by five points at the time of Dalton's exit, and he made a commanding effort in the second half to seal a 5.6 (36) to 3.3 (21) victory.
Dalton was ruled out of the 2021 Tokyo Olympics just weeks before the Games due to a fractured cheekbone.
She was looking to leave that disappointment behind by running an extraordinary campaign for the Giants in 2022, but could miss the rest of the season if the scans reveal a serious injury.
GWS coach Alan McConnell said: "There's a bit of concern about where we end up with Chloe Dalton. Time will tell with regard to her injury."
Giants midfielder Alice Parker was arguably the best with 21 tackles and eight tackles, while Alicia Eva (22 assets), Hanin Zareka (16 disposes), and 40-year-old Irish forward Cora Staunton (two goals) were also important.
GWS defender Brid Stack, who broke his neck in a practice game a year ago, was solid in his AFLW debut, putting his body on the line in a few crucial moments.
Kalinda Howarth scored 13 tackles and one goal for the Gold Coast, while No. 1 draft pick Charlie Robotham showed promise with 11 touches.
Gold Coast coach Cameron Joyce said of Robotam, "In the context of an 18-year-old attacking his leg to come straight, I think everyone will definitely see that."
"She definitely got involved and took a good mark on the wing there. She's only going to get better, and that's exciting for us."
The opening half was an intense arm wrestling with four major changes as both sides worked hard on the ball.
The Gold Coast led by nine points in quarter time and one point at halftime, but the Giants dominated from that point on, with Staunton scoring two second-half goals to seal the win.
"We had some really good series in the game, and I thought it would put us in a little bit of a comfort zone," McConnell said.
"For the rest of the first half, he punched us.
"We needed to reassess how we were playing at halftime, and to the credit of our girls, we definitely came home like a train around the ball."
