Suns win, but miss AFLW top four by 0.2 percentage points

Gold Coast beat GWS 9.8 (62) to 7.11 (53) at Henson Park on Sunday, and still missed the AFLW top four by a whisker. The Suns finished 0.2 percentage points behind Carlton, who held fourth spot after beating Brisbane on Saturday, ABC News reported.

Scores are written as goals, then behinds, then the total. A goal is worth six points and a behind one. Percentage is points scored divided by points conceded, and it separates teams that finish level on wins. So a 0.2 gap is small, but it was enough to decide fourth place.

The win was Gold Coast's ninth of the season. It came in the final game of the home-and-away rounds, the regular season before finals begin. Charlie Rowbottom had 33 disposals (kicks and handballs), two goals and 12 clearances (winning the ball from a stoppage), according to the same ABC report.

The day's results shaped the finals picture too. Essendon beat Collingwood 4.14 (38) to 4.7 (31). Melbourne beat Adelaide 6.11 (47) to 3.11 (29), which secured third place and a qualifying final against Geelong. Sydney beat Fremantle by one point, 5.7 (37) to 5.6 (36), and will now play the Western Bulldogs in an elimination final, where a loss ends the season.

Chloe Molloy kicked four of Sydney's five goals against Fremantle and went on to win the league's goalkicking award, ABC reported.

For GWS, the afternoon was also a farewell. Alicia Eva and Isabel Huntington played their last game for the Giants before retiring. Eva was an inaugural AFLW player with Collingwood 10 years ago and captained GWS for five years. Huntington was a number one draft pick and an All-Australian. Her six-year career included three anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries, serious knee ligament tears that keep players out for long stretches.

Gold Coast's margin over GWS was nine points. Their margin on the ladder was 0.2 percentage points, and that was the one that counted.