Sarah Perkins is ready to return to AFLW

This round saw the return of fan-favourite Sarah Perkins to the AFLW field as a Melbourne injury replacement.

The Adelaide premiership player has been training with the Dees in between her roles with Hawthorn’s VFLW side and her new appointment as specialist coach at RMIT University’s Women’s Football Academy and received her chance when Lauren Pearce and Meg Downie were ruled out through injury and illness respectively.

The 26-year old couldn’t have asked for a better start to her second chance: she set up the first goal of the game to Eden Zanker after winning a free kick inside the opening minute.

Across the course of the match, she was used alternatively as a key forward and second ruck and finished with nine touches, three tackles, two marks and two score assists.

Best of all, she delighted the Casey Fields crowd by roosting through a trademark set shot goal after the final siren to ice the cake in a match in which she showed every sign of still having the skills and grit of an AFLW player.