Gold Coast delists pregnant AFLW player Georgia Clayden weeks before she is due
Gold Coast Suns AFLW player Georgia Clayden has been delisted, weeks before she is due to give birth. A delisting means the club removes a player from its list, so she will not be on the team's books for next season.
Clayden spent the season on the inactive list, the spot clubs use for players who cannot play for a time. Her entry was marked "injury (pregnancy)". The club has also told Sienna McMullen that she will not be offered a contract for 2027, according to ABC News.
Former AFLW player Kate McCarthy said players need more security, and a real chance to return to the game after having a baby. North Melbourne's Eilish Sheerin publicly responded that in other industries, a decision like this would be seen as discrimination.
This is not the first time a pregnant player has been left out of a club's plans. Former Carlton captain Kerryn Peterson was told by Carlton that she would not be offered a contract for 2026, months after giving birth to her first child. She welcomed her son, Max, in August and had planned to return to the club the following season.
Other clubs have gone the other way. Essendon's Bess Keaney rejoined the club's primary list this season, after having a baby last year.
The rules here are set by the AFLW Collective Bargaining Agreement, the deal covering the league and its players. Under it, players returning from pregnancy can come off the inactive list at any point. Before they do, they must be assessed as medically fit by the club doctor or an AFL medical officer.
The agreement also covers the replacement side of the ledger. A player signed into a pregnancy spot can see out a one-season contract, and the team can carry a squad of 31 for the rest of that season.
So the rules allow a return at almost any time. What they do not decide is whether a club keeps a player's place open while she is away. That choice sits with the club, and it is the choice Gold Coast has now made for Clayden.
