Geelong Cats beat West Coast Eagles 8.18 (66) to 1.7 (13) on Saturday at Sullivan Logistics Stadium and stayed top of the AFLW. ABC News said the 53-point win underlined their premiership credentials. The AFL’s official site confirmed the score and called it a ninth straight win.

Midfielder Georgie Prespakis had 39 disposals, six tackles, five clearances and a career-high 13 score involvements, ABC reported. Mikayla Bowen had 27 disposals. The Cats had eight different goalkickers. AFL.com.au said they kicked six unanswered goals after half-time; the Eagles did not score a goal until the final three minutes.

Geelong have been unbeaten since round one after an opening loss. Last week they kicked 14 goals against Greater Western Sydney. AFL said the margin was West Coast’s heaviest loss of the season and the second-heaviest in Daisy Pearce’s three seasons as coach.

On the same day Adelaide Crows ended Gold Coast Suns’ winning run, 10.3 (63) to 7.11 (53) at Unley Oval. Irish sisters Grace Kelly (three goals) and Niamh Kelly (two) led the Crows, and 18-year-old Chloe Bown kicked a last-quarter goal. Midfielder Maddi Newman went down twice with a knee injury; ABC did not give a final diagnosis.

The Crows sat eighth with five wins and five losses. Brisbane Lions and the Western Bulldogs also won on Saturday, ABC noted, as the top eight took shape.

The Cats’ next match is listed for Saturday 24 October against Fremantle. AFLW scoring uses goals (six points) and behinds (one point), not association-football goals.

Image: Ymblanter, Kardinia Park (Cats’ home) from the south-east, 7 April 2024, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons. Not Sullivan Logistics Stadium, Saturday’s venue.

Sources consulted: Adelaide Crows snap Gold Coast Suns' AFLW winning streak as Geelong Cats underline premiership credentials against West Coast — ABC News; Cats' premiership charge gathers pace after rout of Eagles — AFL.