Olivia Robinson was one of the more unlucky players not to represent her state at the AFLW Under 18 Championships. The Dandenong Stingrays midfielder adds a lot of impressive traits to the mix playing as a midfielder who can also push forward, and earned a top three finish in the Stingrays’ best and fairest, no mean feat considering Dandenong’s performance throughout the year.

Averaging 17.7 disposals and laying 5.0 tackles per game, Robinson was able to be a key link in transition between onball and the forward 50, moving well and making good decisions by hand or foot. Her skills were clean and she more often than not was able to hit a target going forward. By being able to play both onball and at half-forward showed a level of versatility too, and she had a big second half to the year. Her best game of the year came in Round 9 against the Knights with a number of key personnel missing. Robinson stepped up to have 26 disposals,, three marks, five tackles, six inside 50s, five rebound 50s and kick two goals. Across the course of the year, Robinson had more than 15 disposals on all bar three occasions, but missed out on being included in the Country squad.

Robinson put the disappointment of missing out behind her and continued to produce on the field, having a really good grand final as well, and staking her claim to the AFLW clubs, as shown by her AFLW Draft Combine invite. As a player with high footy IQ and nice traits, she has a lot of potential to get better. She does have that lack of exposure compared to others, and is not a predominant marker like some players, but she is clean on the inside and outside and is able to hit targets consistently. If a club is looking for a player who can use the ball well and make good decisions, that Robinson could well be a valued pick up in this year’s AFLW Draft.