When the game was on the line, Fremantle star Sabreena Duffy rose to the occasion.
The dynamic forward kicked two goals within two minutes in the fourth quarter against Carlton, cutting the margin to two points before the cool head of Gemma Houghton prevailed to produce the winner.
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"Carlton are a really tough side, the last time we'd played them was the prelim (final in 2019), and we didn't get the choccies on that day," Duffy told womens.afl.
"We showed a lot of resilience and grit, it was a really hard-fought win and I don't think I've played in a win like that before.
"It's definitely character-building, the team was amazing, everyone was on board in the last quarter, and we were lucky to get over the line, which is good."
Duffy's two goals were as different as you could get: a dribbler from the goalsquare under enormous tackle pressure, and a bomb from 50m over the head of several players.
"I'd tried to play my role for the team up until that point. Our main focus was just to shut down their handball and we were a bit patchy on that, but when we finally got the hang of it, we were really able to get momentum and move the ball forward.
"I saw that no one was in the square, so I thought I'd pop it out in front (of the pack of players). I think it might have been Gemma, but I knew whoever was down there was quick and they would be able to run onto it, and it was just a lucky bounce."
Duffy is now in her third year of AFLW and is a crucial cog in the varied Fremantle forward line that has caused sides considerable trouble for the past few years.
"It's pretty fun, I wouldn't want to play in any other line. We cop a bit of stick for being a bit unique and bit weird, we get teased quite a bit by the other girls," Duffy said with a laugh.
"But the unique thing about our forward line is we have so many different players. You've got the quick ones, and then we recently brought Jazzy Stewart into the forward line, so that creates a different dynamic with her left boot. She kicked two goals on Sunday, so that's another thing for defenders (to worry about).
"We thrive off each other's energy and skill, we complement each other quite well in that sense. If it's not Gemma taking a speccy, it's Roxy bobbing up and taking one, and Gabby is the most underrated player in the comp, she's out there giving goals away left, right and centre. It's a privilege to be in the forward line."
