# 2021 AFL Women's season

The 2021 AFL Women's season was the fifth season of the AFL Women's (AFLW) competition, the highest-level senior women's Australian rules football competition in Australia. The season featured 14 clubs and ran from 28 January to 17 April, comprising a nine-round home-and-away season followed by a three-week finals series featuring the top six clubs.
Brisbane won the premiership, defeating Adelaide by 18 points in the 2021 AFL Women's Grand Final. Adelaide won the minor premiership by finishing atop the home-and-away ladder with a 7–2 win–loss record. Fremantle's Kiara Bowers and Collingwood's Brianna Davey tied for the AFL Women's best and fairest award as the league's best and fairest players, and Carlton's Darcy Vescio won her second AFL Women's leading goalkicker award as the league's leading goalkicker.

## Format

The previous two AFLW seasons were formatted with the assistance of conferences, which split the league's clubs into two ranking tables. The AFL elected to remove the conferences for the 2021 season and revert to a single ladder. Under the terms of the existing contractual bargaining agreement between the players and the AFL, teams will play nine regular season matches, before a three-week finals series for the top six teams occurs. Owing to the fact clubs will not get the opportunity to play all of their opponents once, the AFL placed the teams together in a single 2020 ladder and then broke them up into brackets to attempt a fair fixture for the 2021 season.
The season was played during the second year of the COVID-19 pandemic. As the season began, Australia had largely settled into a paradigm of most states maintaining zero COVID-19 cases outside of their international travel quarantine systems; this allowed football games to be played in front of crowds, usually with reduced capacity, and unhindered interstate travel was permitted without quarantine. However, the different state governments often responded quickly to small numbers or even single virus cases being discovered in the community; this meant border restrictions or quarantine periods were at times re-introduced at short notice, impacting interstate travel for games; and, in some cases, that city- or state-wide lockdowns could be imposed within the impacted states, precluding football activities altogether. The season's original nine-round fixture was discarded due to such restrictions after only one week, in favour of a floating fixture released around any restrictions in place at the time.

## Home-and-away season

All starting times are local time.

### Round 1

| | Round 1 | Round 1 | Round 1 | | |
| Thursday, 28 January (7:15 pm) | Carlton 4.3 (27) | def. by | Collingwood 5.3 (33) | Ikon Park (crowd: 6,712) | Report |
| Friday, 29 January (7:10 pm) | St Kilda 8.3 (51) | def. | Western Bulldogs 6.6 (42) | RSEA Park (crowd: 2,523) | Report |
| Saturday, 30 January (2:10 pm) | Gold Coast 5.5 (35) | def. by | Melbourne 9.2 (56) | Metricon Stadium (crowd: 1,902) | Report |
| Saturday, 30 January (2:10 pm) | West Coast 2.6 (18) | def. by | Adelaide 8.8 (56) | Mineral Resources Park (crowd: 1,929) | Report |
| Sunday, 31 January (12:10 pm) | Geelong 1.3 (9) | def. by | North Melbourne 11.5 (71) | GMHBA Stadium (crowd: 3,701) | Report |
| Sunday, 31 January (2:10 pm) | Richmond 1.6 (12) | def. by | Brisbane Lions 5.11 (41) | Swinburne Centre (crowd: 988) | Report |
| Sunday, 31 January (1:10 pm) | Fremantle 8.10 (58) | def. | Greater Western Sydney 4.4 (28) | Fremantle Oval (crowd: 3,195) | Report |

### Round 2

| | Round 2 | Round 2 | Round 2 | | |
| Friday, 5 February (7:45 pm) | Western Bulldogs 6.6 (42) | def. | Carlton 5.6 (36) | VU Whitten Oval (crowd: 3,479) | Report |
| Saturday, 6 February (3:10 pm) | Collingwood 6.9 (45) | def. | Geelong 2.4 (16) | Victoria Park (crowd: 2,938) | Report |
| Saturday, 6 February (5:10 pm) | Melbourne 7.2 (44) | def. | Richmond 2.4 (16) | Casey Fields (crowd: 2,581) | Report |
| Sunday, 7 February (1:10 pm) | North Melbourne 5.6 (36) | def. | St Kilda 1.4 (10) | Arden Street Oval (crowd: 1,977) | Report |
| Sunday, 7 February (2:10 pm) | Brisbane Lions 10.5 (65) | def. | Gold Coast 0.2 (2) | Hickey Park (crowd: 2,101) | Report |
| Sunday, 7 February (5:10 pm) | Greater Western Sydney 2.3 (15) | def. by | Adelaide 9.8 (62) | Blacktown International Sportspark (crowd: 0) | Report |
| Sunday, 7 February (4:15 pm) | Fremantle 2.11 (23) | def. | West Coast 2.2 (14) | Fremantle Oval (crowd: 0) | Report |
| The matches in this round were altered during the week prior to the round, after a COVID-19 case in Perth resulted in a five-day lockdown in Western Australia for West Coast and Fremantle, and quarantine restrictions for Adelaide and Greater Western Sydney clubs returning from their Round 1 games in Perth. Four Round 2 matches were cancelled: Greater Western Sydney vs West Coast at Norwood Oval, Adelaide vs Fremantle at Norwood Oval, Collingwood vs Gold Coast at Victoria Park and Brisbane Lions vs Geelong at Hickey Park – with the eight clubs refixtured into matches not requiring interstate travel. The Western Derby was added to the schedule only after the Western Australian lockdown was raised on 5 February. Gold Coast's score of 0.2 (2) vs the Brisbane Lions was the lowest in the history of the competition. The Western Derby was played in torrential rain, and produced the lowest match aggregate score for both Fremantle and West Coast. ||||||

### Round 3

| | Round 3 | Round 3 | Round 3 | | |
| Friday, 12 February (7:10 pm) | Geelong 1.3 (9) | def. by | Western Bulldogs 3.6 (24) | GMHBA Stadium (crowd: 1,124) | Report |
| Saturday, 13 February (3:10 pm) | Greater Western Sydney 2.6 (18) | def. | Gold Coast 1.2 (8) | Blacktown ISP Oval (crowd: 625) | Report |
| Saturday, 13 February (5:10 pm) | St Kilda 2.4 (16) | def. by | Carlton 6.4 (40) | RSEA Park (crowd: 0) | Report |
| Saturday, 13 February (7:10 pm) | Melbourne 9.6 (60) | def. | North Melbourne 8.3 (51) | Casey Fields (crowd: 0) | Report |
| Sunday, 14 February (12:40 pm) | Adelaide 1.7 (13) | def. by | Fremantle 7.1 (43) | Norwood Oval (crowd: 2,717) | Report |
| Sunday, 14 February (3:10 pm) | Richmond 4.7 (31) | def. by | Collingwood 7.6 (48) | Swinburne Centre (crowd: 0) | Report |
| Monday, 15 February (4:15 pm) | Brisbane Lions 10.5 (65) | def. | West Coast 2.8 (20) | Hickey Park (crowd: 0) | Report |
| A COVID-19 outbreak in Melbourne saw new border restrictions imposed on travel from Victoria. Planned fixtures between Brisbane Lions and Collingwood at Hickey Park and Richmond and West Coast at Swinburne Centre were switched on Thursday 11 February. Matches in Victoria on Saturday and Sunday were played behind closed doors after a five-day lockdown was imposed in the state on 13–17 February. ||||||

### Round 4

| | Round 4 | Round 4 | Round 4 | | |
| Friday, 19 February (7:10 pm) | St Kilda 7.9 (51) | def. | Geelong 3.4 (22) | RSEA Park (crowd: 1,454) | Report |
| Saturday, 20 February (3:10 pm) | Carlton 8.3 (51) | def. | Richmond 7.4 (46) | Ikon Park (crowd: 2,212) | Report |
| Saturday, 20 February (2:10 pm) | Fremantle 7.13 (55) | def. | Gold Coast 1.0 (6) | Fremantle Oval (crowd: 2,410) | Report |
| Saturday, 20 February (7:10 pm) | North Melbourne 0.8 (8) | def. by | Collingwood 4.4 (28) | Marvel Stadium (crowd: 2,254) | Report |
| Sunday, 21 February (12:10 pm) | Brisbane Lions 5.3 (33) | def. by | Adelaide 6.9 (45) | Hickey Park (crowd: 1,518) | Report |
| Sunday, 21 February (3:10 pm) | Western Bulldogs 6.1 (37) | def. | Melbourne 2.12 (24) | VU Whitten Oval (crowd: 3,180) | Report |
| Sunday, 21 February (5:10 pm) | Greater Western Sydney 7.6 (48) | def. | West Coast 4.4 (28) | Blacktown ISP Oval (crowd: 974) | Report |
| Round 4 fixtures were again set to ensure no interstate travel into or out of Victoria was required. ||||||

### Round 5

| | Round 5 | Round 5 | Round 5 | | |
| Friday, 26 February (7:10 pm) | Geelong 2.1 (13) | def. by | Richmond 9.6 (60) | GMHBA Stadium (crowd: 1,829) | Report |
| Saturday, 27 February (3:10 pm) | Western Bulldogs 7.5 (47) | def. | Greater Western Sydney 3.4 (22) | VU Whitten Oval (crowd: 2,461) | Report |
| Saturday, 27 February (2:10 pm) | Fremantle 1.8 (14) | def. by | Brisbane Lions 3.7 (25) | Fremantle Oval (crowd: 3,423) | Report |
| Saturday, 27 February (7:10 pm) | North Melbourne 9.5 (59) | def. | Carlton 6.1 (37) | UTAS Stadium (crowd: 820) | Report |
| Sunday, 28 February (12:40 pm) | Adelaide 8.13 (61) | def. | St Kilda 1.2 (8) | Norwood Oval (crowd: 2,497) | Report |
| Sunday, 28 February (3:10 pm) | Collingwood 7.7 (49) | def. | Melbourne 1.8 (14) | Victoria Park (crowd: 2,931) | Report |
| Sunday, 28 February (2:10 pm) | West Coast 5.4 (34) | def. | Gold Coast 4.9 (33) | Mineral Resources Park (crowd: 1,119) | Report |
| Richmond recorded its first ever AFLW win, following ten consecutive losses since its entry to the competition in 2020. ||||||

### Round 6

| | Round 6 | Round 6 | Round 6 | | |
| Friday, 5 March (5:10 pm) | Richmond 5.2 (32) | def. by | North Melbourne 10.7 (67) | Swinburne Centre (crowd: 803) | Report |
| Saturday, 6 March (3:10 pm) | Greater Western Sydney 2.5 (17) | def. by | Brisbane Lions 7.13 (55) | Manuka Oval (crowd: 1,847) | Report |
| Saturday, 6 March (4:40 pm) | Adelaide 13.7 (85) | def. | Gold Coast 2.3 (15) | Norwood Oval (crowd: 2,087) | Report |
| Saturday, 6 March (7:10 pm) | Melbourne 9.12 (66) | def. | St Kilda 3.4 (22) | Casey Fields (crowd: 1,096) | Report |
| Sunday, 7 March (12:40 pm) | Carlton 10.4 (64) | def. | Geelong 4.7 (31) | Ikon Park (crowd: 1,764) | Report |
| Sunday, 7 March (2:40 pm) | Collingwood 7.9 (51) | def. | Western Bulldogs 2.3 (15) | Victoria Park (crowd: 3,017) | Report |
| Sunday, 7 March (1:40 pm) | West Coast 1.2 (8) | def. by | Fremantle 11.9 (75) | Optus Stadium (crowd: 9,552) | Report |
| West Coast and Fremantle played a second Western Derby for the season, as border and quarantine restrictions following Victoria's local COVID-19 cases in February precluded the Western Australian clubs from playing any Victorian club without hubbing. It was the first time two sides had met twice in the same AFL Women's home-and-away season. ||||||

### Round 7

| | Round 7 | Round 7 | Round 7 | | |
| Friday, 12 March (6:40 pm) | Gold Coast 4.2 (26) | def. by | Richmond 6.5 (41) | Metricon Stadium (crowd: 907) | Report |
| Saturday, 13 March (3:10 pm) | St Kilda 3.7 (25) | def. by | Greater Western Sydney 7.3 (45) | RSEA Park (crowd: 791) | Report |
| Saturday, 13 March (5:10 pm) | North Melbourne 5.7 (37) | def. | Western Bulldogs 3.8 (26) | North Hobart Oval (crowd: 1,034) | Report |
| Saturday, 13 March (7:10 pm) | Melbourne 6.7 (43) | def. | Adelaide 2.3 (15) | Casey Fields (crowd: 445) | Report |
| Sunday, 14 March (1:10 pm) | Carlton 6.5 (41) | def. by | Fremantle 6.9 (45) | Ikon Park (crowd: 2,048) | Report |
| Sunday, 14 March (3:10 pm) | Brisbane Lions 4.11 (35) | def. | Collingwood 4.8 (32) | VU Whitten Oval (crowd: 0) | Report |
| Monday, 15 March (2:10 pm) | West Coast 8.5 (53) | def. | Geelong 2.2 (14) | Mineral Resources Park (crowd: 848) | Report |
| The Brisbane Lions vs. Collingwood match was originally scheduled for Hickey Park in Brisbane, but one day prior to the match it was moved to Whitten Oval in Melbourne, after a positive COVID-19 case was discovered in Queensland. The match was played behind closed doors. ||||||

### Round 8

| | Round 8 | Round 8 | Round 8 | | |
| Friday, 19 March (5:10 pm) | Gold Coast 4.3 (27) | def. by | Carlton 13.9 (87) | Metricon Stadium (crowd: 272) | Report |
| Saturday, 20 March (1:10 pm) | Geelong 1.3 (9) | def. by | Greater Western Sydney 2.4 (16) | GMHBA Stadium (crowd: 963) | Report |
| Saturday, 20 March (3:10 pm) | Collingwood 8.11 (59) | def. | St Kilda 2.1 (13) | Victoria Park (crowd: 2,228) | Report |
| Saturday, 20 March (4:10 pm) | Brisbane Lions 4.11 (35) | def. | North Melbourne 2.8 (20) | Gabba (crowd: 6,613) | Report |
| Sunday, 21 March (12:40 pm) | Richmond 5.12 (42) | def. | West Coast 5.4 (34) | Swinburne Centre (crowd: 619) | Report |
| Sunday, 21 March (3:40 pm) | Adelaide 12.6 (78) | def. | Western Bulldogs 3.4 (22) | Norwood Oval (crowd: 1,749) | Report |
| Sunday, 21 March (3:10 pm) | Fremantle 4.8 (32) | def. by | Melbourne 5.7 (37) | Fremantle Oval (crowd: 2,233) | Report |
| Carlton's score of 13.9 (87) set a new record as the highest score in history of the competition. ||||||

### Round 9

| | Round 9 | Round 9 | Round 9 | | |
| Friday, 26 March (5:10 pm) | Western Bulldogs 7.3 (45) | def. | Richmond 5.2 (32) | VU Whitten Oval (crowd: 1,985) | Report |
| Saturday, 27 March (1:10 pm) | North Melbourne 4.6 (30) | def. | Fremantle 4.5 (29) | Arden Street Oval (crowd: 1,223) | Report |
| Saturday, 27 March (3:10 pm) | Melbourne 6.2 (38) | def. | Brisbane Lions 6.0 (36) | Casey Fields (crowd: 743) | Report |
| Saturday, 27 March (4:10 pm) | Gold Coast 3.6 (24) | def. by | Geelong 6.5 (41) | Metricon Stadium (crowd: 1,506) | Report |
| Sunday, 28 March (12:10 pm) | Adelaide 4.7 (31) | def. | Collingwood 2.5 (17) | Norwood Oval (crowd: 2,314) | Report |
| Sunday, 28 March (4:10 pm) | Greater Western Sydney 4.7 (31) | def. by | Carlton 4.8 (32) | Blacktown ISP Oval (crowd: 903) | Report |
| Sunday, 28 March (3:10 pm) | West Coast 3.2 (20) | def. by | St Kilda 11.10 (76) | Mineral Resources Park (crowd: 809) | Report |

## Ladder

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | D | PF | PA | PP | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Adelaide | 9 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 446 | 214 | 208.4 | 28 | Finals series |
| 2 | Brisbane Lions (P) | 9 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 390 | 200 | 195.0 | 28 | Finals series |
| 3 | Collingwood | 9 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 362 | 190 | 190.5 | 28 | Finals series |
| 4 | Melbourne | 9 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 382 | 293 | 130.4 | 28 | Finals series |
| 5 | Fremantle | 9 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 374 | 202 | 185.1 | 24 | Finals series |
| 6 | North Melbourne | 9 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 379 | 266 | 142.5 | 24 | Finals series |
| 7 | Carlton | 9 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 415 | 330 | 125.8 | 20 | |
| 8 | Western Bulldogs | 9 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 300 | 340 | 88.2 | 20 | |
| 9 | Greater Western Sydney | 9 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 240 | 324 | 74.1 | 16 | |
| 10 | Richmond | 9 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 312 | 369 | 84.6 | 12 | |
| 11 | St Kilda | 9 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 272 | 391 | 69.6 | 12 | |
| 12 | West Coast | 9 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 229 | 432 | 53.0 | 8 | |
| 13 | Geelong | 9 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 164 | 408 | 40.2 | 4 | |
| 14 | Gold Coast | 9 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 176 | 482 | 36.5 | 0 | |

## Progression by round

* Numbers highlighted in green indicates the team finished the round inside the top 6.
* Numbers highlighted in blue indicates the team finished in first place for that round.
* Numbers highlighted in red indicates the team finished in last place for that round.
| | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
| 1 | Adelaide | 4$_3$ | 8$_3$ | 8$_6$ | 12$_4$ | 16$_4$ | 20$_4$ | 20$_4$ | 24$_3$ | 28$_1$ |
| 2 | Brisbane Lions | 4$_2$ | 8$_1$ | 12$_1$ | 12$_3$ | 16$_2$ | 20$_3$ | 24$_2$ | 28$_1$ | 28$_2$ |
| 3 | Collingwood | 4$_6$ | 8$_6$ | 12$_3$ | 16$_2$ | 20$_1$ | 24$_1$ | 24$_3$ | 28$_2$ | 28$_3$ |
| 4 | Melbourne | 4$_5$ | 8$_4$ | 12$_4$ | 12$_5$ | 12$_7$ | 16$_6$ | 20$_6$ | 24$_5$ | 28$_4$ |
| 5 | Fremantle | 4$_4$ | 8$_5$ | 12$_2$ | 16$_1$ | 16$_3$ | 20$_2$ | 24$_1$ | 24$_4$ | 24$_5$ |
| 6 | North Melbourne | 4$_1$ | 8$_2$ | 8$_5$ | 8$_7$ | 12$_6$ | 16$_5$ | 20$_5$ | 20$_6$ | 24$_6$ |
| 7 | Carlton | 0$_9$ | 0$_9$ | 4$_8$ | 8$_8$ | 8$_8$ | 12$_8$ | 12$_8$ | 16$_7$ | 20$_7$ |
| 8 | Western Bulldogs | 0$_8$ | 4$_7$ | 8$_7$ | 12$_6$ | 16$_5$ | 16$_7$ | 16$_7$ | 16$_8$ | 20$_8$ |
| 9 | Greater Western Sydney | 0$_{11}$ | 0$_{11}$ | 4$_{10}$ | 8$_{10}$ | 8$_{10}$ | 8$_{10}$ | 12$_9$ | 16$_9$ | 16$_9$ |
| 10 | Richmond | 0$_{13}$ | 0$_{12}$ | 0$_{11}$ | 0$_{11}$ | 4$_{11}$ | 4$_{11}$ | 8$_{10}$ | 12$_{10}$ | 12$_{10}$ |
| 11 | St Kilda | 4$_7$ | 4$_8$ | 4$_9$ | 8$_9$ | 8$_9$ | 8$_9$ | 8$_{11}$ | 8$_{12}$ | 12$_{11}$ |
| 12 | West Coast | 0$_{12}$ | 0$_{10}$ | 0$_{12}$ | 0$_{12}$ | 4$_{12}$ | 4$_{12}$ | 8$_{12}$ | 8$_{11}$ | 8$_{12}$ |
| 13 | Geelong | 0$_{14}$ | 0$_{14}$ | 0$_{14}$ | 0$_{13}$ | 0$_{14}$ | 0$_{13}$ | 0$_{14}$ | 0$_{14}$ | 4$_{13}$ |
| 14 | Gold Coast | 0$_{10}$ | 0$_{13}$ | 0$_{13}$ | 0$_{14}$ | 0$_{13}$ | 0$_{14}$ | 0$_{13}$ | 0$_{13}$ | 0$_{14}$ |

## Finals series

| Qualifying Finals | Qualifying Finals | Qualifying Finals | Preliminary Finals | Preliminary Finals | Preliminary Finals | Grand Final | Grand Final |
| | | | 1 | Adelaide | 5.3 (33) | | |
| 4 | Melbourne | 5.10 (40) | | Melbourne | 1.9 (15) | | |
| 5 | Fremantle | 3.5 (23) | | | | Adelaide | 3.2 (20) |
| | | | | | | Brisbane Lions | 6.2 (38) |
| | | | 2 | Brisbane Lions | 7.3 (45) | | |
| 3 | Collingwood | 7.8 (50) | | Collingwood | 6.5 (41) | | |
| 6 | North Melbourne | 7.2 (44) | | | | | |

### Qualifying finals

| | Qualifying finals | Qualifying finals | Qualifying finals | | |
| QF B: Saturday, 3 April (1:05 pm) | Melbourne 5.10 (40) | def. | Fremantle 3.5 (23) | Casey Fields (crowd: 1,174) | Report |
| QF A: Saturday, 3 April (3:10 pm) | Collingwood 7.8 (50) | def. | North Melbourne 7.2 (44) | Victoria Park (crowd: 3,010) | Report |

### Preliminary finals

| | Preliminary finals | Preliminary finals | Preliminary finals | | |
| PF1: Saturday, 10 April (1:40 pm) | Adelaide 5.3 (33) | def. | Melbourne 1.9 (15) | Adelaide Oval (crowd: 6,382) | Report |
| PF2: Saturday, 10 April (4:10 pm) | Brisbane Lions 7.3 (45) | def. | Collingwood 6.5 (41) | Gabba (crowd: 4,435) | Report |

### Grand final

| | Grand Final | Grand Final | Grand Final | | |
| Saturday, 17 April (1:30 pm) | Adelaide 3.2 (20) | def. by | Brisbane Lions 6.2 (38) | Adelaide Oval (crowd: 22,934) | Report |

## Win–loss table

| + | Win | | Qualified for finals |
| - | Loss | X | Bye |
| | Draw | | Eliminated |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | QF | PF | GF | Ranking |
| Adelaide | WCE 38 | GWS 47 | Frem 30 | BL 12 | StK 53 | GCS 70 | Melb 28 | WB 56 | Coll 14 | X | Melb 18 | BL 18 | 2 |
| Brisbane Lions | Rich 29 | GCS 63 | WCE 45 | Adel 12 | Frem 11 | GWS 38 | Coll 3 | NM 15 | Melb 2 | X | Coll 4 | Adel 18 | 1 |
| Carlton | Coll 6 | WB 6 | StK 24 | Rich 5 | NM 22 | Geel 33 | Frem 4 | GCS 60 | GWS 1 | X | X | X | 7 |
| Collingwood | Carl 6 | Geel 29 | Rich 17 | NM 20 | Melb 35 | WB 36 | BL 3 | StK 46 | Adel 14 | NM 6 | BL 4 | X | 3 |
| Fremantle | GWS 30 | WCE 9 | Adel 30 | GCS 49 | BL 11 | WCE 67 | Carl 4 | Melb 5 | NM 1 | Melb 17 | X | X | 5 |
| Geelong | NM 62 | Coll 29 | WB 15 | StK 29 | Rich 47 | Carl 33 | WCE 39 | GWS 7 | GCS 17 | X | X | X | 13 |
| Gold Coast | Melb 21 | BL 63 | GWS 10 | Frem 49 | WCE 1 | Adel 70 | Rich 15 | Carl 60 | Geel 17 | X | X | X | 14 |
| Greater Western Sydney | Frem 30 | Adel 47 | GCS 10 | WCE 20 | WB 25 | BL 38 | StK 20 | Geel 7 | Carl 1 | X | X | X | 9 |
| Melbourne | GCS 21 | Ric 28 | NM 9 | WB 13 | Coll 35 | StK 44 | Adel 28 | Frem 5 | BL 2 | Frem 17 | Adel 18 | X | 4 |
| North Melbourne | Geel 62 | StK 26 | Melb 9 | Coll 20 | Carl 22 | Rich 35 | WB 11 | BL 15 | Frem 1 | Coll 6 | X | X | 6 |
| Richmond | BL 29 | Melb 28 | Coll 17 | Carl 5 | Geel 47 | NM 35 | GCS 15 | WCE 8 | WB 13 | X | X | X | 10 |
| St Kilda | WB 9 | NM 26 | Carl 24 | Geel 29 | Adel 53 | Melb 44 | GWS 20 | Coll 46 | WCE 56 | X | X | X | 11 |
| West Coast | Adel 38 | Frem 9 | BL 45 | GWS 20 | GCS 1 | Frem 67 | Geel 39 | Rich 8 | StK 56 | X | X | X | 12 |
| Western Bulldogs | StK 9 | Carl 6 | Geel 15 | Melb 13 | GWS 25 | Coll 36 | NM 11 | Adel 56 | Rich 13 | X | X | X | 8 |

## Awards
### League awards

* The league best and fairest was jointly awarded to Kiara Bowers of Fremantle and Brianna Davey of Collingwood, who polled 15 votes each.
* The leading goalkicker was awarded to Darcy Vescio of Carlton, who kicked 16 goals during the home and away season.
* The Rising Star was awarded to Tyla Hanks of Melbourne.
* The best on ground medal in the AFL Women's Grand Final was won by Kate Lutkins of Brisbane Lions.
* The goal of the year was awarded to Courtney Hodder of Brisbane Lions.
* The mark of the year was awarded to Danielle Ponter of Adelaide.
* AFLW Players Association awards:
** The most valuable player was awarded to Brianna Davey of Collingwood.
** The most courageous player was awarded to Chelsea Randall of Adelaide.
** The best captain was awarded to Ellie Blackburn of Western Bulldogs.
** The best first year player was awarded to Ellie McKenzie of Richmond.
* The AFLW Coaches Association awards:
** The champion player of the year was awarded to Kiara Bowers of Fremantle.
** The senior coach of the year was awarded to Craig Starcevich of Brisbane Lions.
* Brianna Davey was named captain of the All-Australian team. Twelve of the fourteen clubs had at least one representative in the 21-woman team.
* The minor premiership was won by Adelaide.
* The wooden spoon was "won" by Gold Coast.

### Best and fairests

| Club | Award name | Player |
| Adelaide | Club Champion | Ebony Marinoff |
| Brisbane Lions | Best and fairest | Ally Anderson |
| Carlton | Best and fairest | Darcy Vescio |
| Collingwood | Best and fairest | Brianna Davey |
| Fremantle | Fairest and best | Kiara Bowers |
| Geelong | Best and fairest | Amy McDonald |
| Gold Coast | Club Champion | Lauren Ahrens |
| Greater Western Sydney | Gabrielle Trainor Medal | Alyce Parker |
| Melbourne | Best and fairest | Tyla Hanks & Karen Paxman |
| North Melbourne | Best and fairest | Jasmine Garner |
| Richmond | Best and fairest | Monique Conti |
| St Kilda | Best and fairest | Georgia Patrikios |
| Western Bulldogs | Best and fairest | Ellie Blackburn |
| West Coast | Club Champion | Isabella Lewis |

### Leading goalkickers

* Numbers highlighted in blue indicates the player led the season's goal kicking tally at the end of that round.
| Rank | Player | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Total |
| 1 | Darcy Vescio | Carlton | 1$_1$ | 0$_1$ | 0$_1$ | 3$_4$ | 2$_6$ | 2$_8$ | 1$_9$ | 5$_{14}$ | 2$_{16}$ | 16 |
| 2 | Gemma Houghton | Fremantle | 3$_3$ | 1$_4$ | 2$_6$ | 0$_6$ | 0$_6$ | 5$_{11}$ | 1$_{12}$ | 1$_{13}$ | 1$_{14}$ | 14 |
| 2 | Chloe Molloy | Collingwood | 2$_2$ | 1$_3$ | 1$_4$ | 2$_6$ | 3$_9$ | 2$_{11}$ | 0$_{11}$ | 2$_{13}$ | 1$_{14}$ | 14 |
| 2 | Katie Brennan | Richmond | 0$_0$ | 0$_0$ | 0$_0$ | 2$_2$ | 3$_5$ | 1$_6$ | 3$_9$ | 2$_{11}$ | 3$_{14}$ | 14 |
| 5 | Dakota Davidson | Brisbane Lions | 1$_1$ | 4$_5$ | 2$_7$ | 1$_8$ | 0$_8$ | 2$_{10}$ | 0$_{10}$ | 1$_{11}$ | 2$_{13}$ | 13 |
| 6 | Erin Phillips | Adelaide | 2$_2$ | 1$_3$ | 1$_4$ | 4$_8$ | 1$_9$ | 2$_{11}$ | 0$_{11}$ | 1$_{12}$ | 0$_{12}$ | 12 |
| 6 | Isabel Huntington | Western Bulldogs | 2$_2$ | 1$_3$ | 1$_4$ | 2$_6$ | 3$_9$ | 0$_9$ | 2$_{11}$ | 0$_{11}$ | 1$_{12}$ | 12 |
| 8 | Kate Hore | Melbourne | 2$_2$ | 2$_4$ | 1$_5$ | 0$_5$ | 0$_5$ | 1$_6$ | 3$_9$ | 2$_{11}$ | 0$_{11}$ | 11 |
| 9 | Courtney Wakefield | Richmond | 1$_1$ | 0$_1$ | 1$_2$ | 3$_5$ | 2$_7$ | 1$_8$ | 1$_9$ | 0$_9$ | 1$_{10}$ | 10 |
| 9 | Cora Staunton | Greater Western Sydney | 0$_0$ | 0$_0$ | 0$_0$ | 4$_4$ | 0$_4$ | 0$_4$ | 3$_7$ | 1$_8$ | 2$_{10}$ | 10 |
Source:

## Coach changes

| Club | Outgoing coach | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Incoming coach | Date of appointment |
| Gold Coast | David Lake | Resigned | 11 April 2021 | Cameron Joyce | 2 June 2021 |
| Geelong | Paul Hood | Resigned | 10 May 2021 | Daniel Lowther | 29 June 2021 |
| St Kilda | Peta Searle | Resigned | 24 June 2021 | Nick Dal Santo | 2 August 2021 |
| West Coast | Daniel Pratt | End of contract | 7 September 2021 | Michael Prior | 7 September 2021 |

## Club leadership

| Club | Coach | Captain(s) | Vice-captain(s) | Leadership group |
| Adelaide | Matthew Clarke | Chelsea Randall | | Sarah Allan, ​Ange Foley, ​Eloise Jones |
| Brisbane Lions | Craig Starcevich | Emma Zielke | Breanna Koenen | Emily Bates, ​Shannon Campbell, ​Kate Lutkins |
| Carlton | Daniel Harford | Kerryn Harrington, Katie Loynes | | Alison Downie, ​Nicola Stevens, ​Darcy Vescio |
| Collingwood | Stephen Symonds | Steph Chiocci, Brianna Davey | Sharni Norder | |
| Fremantle | Trent Cooper | Kara Antonio | | Ebony Antonio, ​Kiara Bowers, ​Hayley Miller, ​Gabby O'Sullivan |
| Geelong | Paul Hood | Meg McDonald | Jordan Ivey | Renee Garing, ​Madeline Keryk, ​Nina Morrison, ​Aasta O'Connor |
| Gold Coast | David Lake | Hannah Dunn, Sam Virgo | | Sarah Perkins, ​Jade Pregelj, ​Jamie Stanton |
| Greater Western Sydney | Alan McConnell | Alicia Eva | | Jessica Dal Pos, ​Pepa Randall, ​Cora Staunton, ​Britt Tully |
| Melbourne | Mick Stinear | Daisy Pearce | Karen Paxman | Libby Birch, ​Maddison Gay, ​Tyla Hanks, ​Kate Hore, ​Sarah Lampard, ​Lily Mithen |
| North Melbourne | Darren Crocker | Emma Kearney | | Jasmine Garner, ​Emma King, ​Ashleigh Riddell |
| Richmond | Ryan Ferguson | Katie Brennan | Sarah Hosking | Christina Bernardi, ​Harriet Cordner, ​Sabrina Frederick, ​Phoebe Monahan, ​Alana Woodward |
| St Kilda | Peta Searle | Cat Phillips, Hannah Priest, Kate Shierlaw, Rhiannon Watt | Tilly Lucas-Rodd, Kate McCarthy | |
| West Coast | Daniel Pratt | Emma Swanson | Dana Hooker | Courtney Guard, ​Alicia Janz, ​Parris Laurie |
| Western Bulldogs | Nathan Burke | Ellie Blackburn | Brooke Lochland | Ashleigh Guest, ​Bailey Hunt, ​Isabel Huntington, ​Kirsty Lamb, ​Bonnie Toogood |