Draft Central’s 2020 Top 50 AFLW Players: #16 – Dana Hooker
WITH the AFL Women’s 2020 season officially come to a close now the awards are done and dusted, Draft Central looks back on our Top 50 Players of season 2020. This countdown purely looks at the 2020 season so does not look at past performances and will not include injured stars such Erin Phillips or Chelsea Randall.
In this edition, we look number 16 in our count, a high-profile off-season recruit who moved from one West Australian club to another.
#16 Dana Hooker
6 GAMES AVE: 19.7 dispsoals, 2.7 marks, 6.7 tackles, 2.8 inside 50s, 3.0 rebounds, 1 goal
When it was announced that Fremantle star, Dana Hooker was crossing to the Dockers’ rivals and incoming club West Coast, it certainly caused a stir in the west. No doubt there was a lot of pressure on the star, needing to perform strongly, particularly when the Derby rolled around. It was fitting that to settle the nerves, she made history by becoming the first Eagles’ goalkicker when she slotted one against the Magpies at Victoria Park.
It would be the only goal she kicked all season, but it did not stop her having a consistent impact, with her best game coming in the final round against Gold Coast Suns. She amassed a whopping 31 disposals, six marks, six tackles, five inside 50s, four rebounds and 124 AFL Fantasy points in a huge day out for the Eagles’ skipper.
In terms of her numbers, Hooker averaged career-highs in disposals (19.7), marks (2.7), inside 50s (2.8) rebounds (3.0) and AFL Fantasy points (88.3), something that has been growing year-on-year. Whilst her season might not have seemed as massive due to the lack of success of her team, the numbers speak for themselves and often Hooker was leading a young and/or inexperienced midfield out on the park.
Having turned 29 in January, Hooker has played a total of 28 games and narrowly missed out on a three-peat of All-Australian nominations. In her first three seasons, Hooker won a club best and fairest then took out back-to-back All-Australian awards, and then earned a place in the 40-player All-Australian squad. At the time of writing, the West Coast best and fairest award had not taken place, but it is fair to say Hooker would be a raging favourite for that gong.
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