2020 VFL Women's season

2020 VFL Women's season
PremiersPremiership not contested

The 2020 VFL Women's season was meant to have been the fifth season of the VFL Women's (VFLW), the state-level senior women's Australian rules football competition in Victoria.[1][2] However, the season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[3][4]

Clubs

Venues and affiliations

Club Home venue(s) Capacity AFLW affiliation
Carlton IKON Park 24,500 Carlton
Tony Sheehan Oval 1,110
Casey Casey Fields 9,000 Melbourne
Collingwood Victoria Park 10,000 Collingwood
Darebin Bill Lawry Oval 3,000 —
Preston City Oval 5,000
Essendon Windy Hill 10,000 Essendon
Geelong Cats Colac Central Reserve 10,000 Geelong
Deakin University 10,000
GMHBA Stadium 36,000
Hawthorn Box Hill City Oval 10,000 —
North Melbourne Arden Street Oval 4,000 North Melbourne
Avalon Airport Oval 8,000
Richmond Swinburne Centre 2,800 Richmond
Southern Saints RSEA Park 8,000 St Kilda
WS Trevor Barker Beach Oval 6,000
Western Bulldogs VU Whitten Oval 10,000 Western Bulldogs
Williamstown Downer Oval 6,000 —

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic

Season suspension

Preparations for the 2020 season featured twelve teams, eleven of which had participated in 2019.[5][6] The changes in league membership came about after Melbourne University transferred its license to North Melbourne after ten years of partnership between the clubs, and Northern Territory folded in September 2019.[7][8]

The 2020 fixture was released on 5 February 2020, with Western Bulldogs scheduled to play Darebin on 9 May in the season opener as part of a 14-match home-and-away season over 16 rounds, followed by a four-week finals series ending on 20 September.[9][10]

The season was disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, which was formally declared a pandemic on 11 March 2020.[11] The start of the VFLW season was suspended indefinitely on 16 March.[12][13]

Cancellation and planned Super Series

After months of uncertainty, it was announced on 16 June 2020 that the VFLW season would be cancelled.[14][15] Instead, a four-team "Super Series" would be held in September 2020 to allow for 120 players to push for inclusion on an AFL Women's (AFLW) list in 2021.[16][17]

On 7 July, the second wave of COVID-19 cases across Melbourne resulted in a new lockdown being imposed by the state government, which all but precluded organised sport in the state until at least 19 August (ultimately lasting several months beyond that).[18][19] The 2020 VFL season was cancelled outright the following day, before the decision was made to cancel the planned VFLW Super Series one month later on 4 August.[20][21]

See also

References

  1. ^ "2020 VFLW Fixture Released". VFL / VFLW. 5 February 2020. Archived from the original on 27 February 2020. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
  2. ^ "2020 VFL WOMEN'S FIXTURE" (PDF). VFL / VFLW. 5 February 2020. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 February 2020. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
  3. ^ Williams, Peter (5 October 2020). "Shaw eyes positives after disappointing 2020 season". Rookie Me Central. Archived from the original on 11 June 2025. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
  4. ^ Williams, Peter (13 September 2021). "2021 VFL Women's Grand Final cancelled". Rookie Me Central. Archived from the original on 1 December 2024. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
  5. ^ "VFLW 2020 fixture release". Hawthorn Football Club. 5 February 2020. Archived from the original on 21 March 2023. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
  6. ^ Walsh, Conor (5 February 2020). "2020 VFLW fixture released". Essendon Football Club. Archived from the original on 17 March 2023. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
  7. ^ "AFLW: North to stand alone". North Melbourne Football Club. 30 October 2019. Archived from the original on 9 September 2023. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
  8. ^ Vivian, Steve (27 September 2019). "AFL's dismantling of NT Thunder will compound structural disadvantages for Indigenous players". ABC News. Archived from the original on 19 March 2024. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
  9. ^ "2020 VFLW fixture revealed". Western Bulldogs. 5 February 2020. Archived from the original on 11 November 2022. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
  10. ^ Mullan, Alanna (6 February 2020). "VFLW 2020 Fixture Released". Collingwood Football Club. Archived from the original on 6 August 2020. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
  11. ^ "Coronavirus and Australian sport – a list of the major cancellations". The Guardian. 24 March 2020. Archived from the original on 2 October 2023. Retrieved 10 June 2025.
  12. ^ "VFL/W, SANFL/W, NEAFL, WAFL/W, TSL/W and Talent Programs to postpone 2020 seasons". VFL / VFLW. 16 March 2020. Archived from the original on 7 August 2020. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
  13. ^ O'Neal, Peggy (15 April 2020). "From the President: April, 2020". Richmond Football Club. Archived from the original on 5 May 2025. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
  14. ^ Ralph, Jon (16 June 2020). "VFL set to launch 2020 season on August 1 with eight teams". Herald Sun. Archived from the original on 10 June 2025. Retrieved 10 June 2025.
  15. ^ "Reeves: VFLW an integral part of Hawks family despite season cancellation". Hawthorn Football Club. 17 June 2020. Archived from the original on 2 November 2022. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
  16. ^ "Future AFLW stars to showcase their talents in VFLW Super Series". AFL.com.au. 16 June 2020. Archived from the original on 11 June 2025. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
  17. ^ Cherny, Daniel (16 June 2020). "VFL revamped, VFLW season substituted with new series". The Age. Archived from the original on 9 December 2024. Retrieved 10 June 2025.
  18. ^ "Victoria reimposes coronavirus stage 3 lockdown on metropolitan Melbourne and Mitchell Shire after record rise in cases". ABC News. 7 July 2020. Archived from the original on 24 March 2025. Retrieved 10 June 2025.
  19. ^ Andrews, Daniel (7 July 2020). "Statement From The Premier". Premier of Victoria. Archived from the original on 28 February 2021. Retrieved 10 June 2025.
  20. ^ Twomey, Callum (8 July 2020). "VFL forced to cancel season after COVID spike". AFL.com.au. Archived from the original on 23 January 2025. Retrieved 10 June 2025.
  21. ^ "rebel Super Series Update". VFL / VFLW. 4 August 2020. Archived from the original on 19 September 2020. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
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