2024 SANFLW Pre-Season begins

The first hint of the 2024 football season has arrived with Norwood’s Senior Women’s squad commencing pre-season training earlier this week. 

Both sides fell agonizingly short of the ultimate success in 2023 with the SANFLW side finishing third overall and making a Preliminary Final, and the Development League team falling seven points short in the Grand Final… so the hard work has begun to lift the cup in 2024!

Both teams have new coaches at the helm with Brad Ferrall coaching the SANFLW team, and his wife Alison Ferrall (Norwood’s recently retired SANFLW Captain) to mentor the Development League team.

At his first official training session in charge Brad Ferrall said he was excited to step into the new role, after spending previous seasons as an assistant coach.

“It’s great to get the pre-season underway, we have done some talent ID stuff and a little bit of fitness testing so it is good to get into the pre-season proper and put things in place,” he said.

“We had one of the youngest lists in the SANFLW last year and with Ali (Ferrall) retiring we will be even younger again. We should have a list that plays alongside each other for a long time.

“I love the culture of this group, we have a good group of people, so I am excited and privileged to coach a club I grew up supporting.”

He said the Senior Women’s playing list had remained consistent from last season.

“We have kept almost all of our players which is positive,” he said.

“This gives us another opportunity to grow on the cohesion that we built last year and keep working towards getting better every game.”

Norwood’s 2023 SANFLW Best and Fairest Tahlita Buethke headlines a strong list of re-signings for 2024, alongside Tesharna Maher, Lana Schwerdt, Steph Simmonds, Molly Brooksby, Emily Bartsch, Coby Morgan, Lauren Smith and Sarah Branford amongst the players to wear the red and blue next year.

The club announced on Tuesday the first player signing of the season, with Mykaela Walker committing to the club.

Walker spent last season on Glenelg’s SANFLW list, playing six Development League games.

The 18-year-old had a strong local league season with Morphettville Park Football Club. She was part of the Women’s Division 1 Premiership team in 2023, kicking 17 goals from 14 games.