Women’s A Reserves- C4 Finals preview: Favourites, Challengers and Wildcards

After finals footy kicked off in the Integrated A and B Divisions last week, it is now time for the Women to crack into the business end of their seasons.

For the past 16 weeks, teams from A Reserves down to C4 have tussled in the sun and rain in what has been the Perth Football League’s biggest season of women’s football yet.

The cream has risen to the top, and now there are only five teams left standing in each league battling it out for premiership glory.

For the first time, the A Grade Women’s season will also continue for another two weeks and run for a full 18-round home-and-away season alongside the Men’s competition, with all other PFL Women’s competitions transitioning into finals mode as of this week.

Here is a rundown of all the contenders heading into this week’s Qualifying and Elimination Finals.

The Finals Format

The PFL’s final-five system has remained unchanged for the last few years, but here is a refresher.

The elimination final is played between fourth and fifth. The winner advances to the first semi-final, and as the name suggests, the loser is eliminated.

The qualifying final is hosted by second against third. The winner advances to play the minor premier, who has the first week off, in the second semi-final.

The first semi-final is hosted by the losing side in the qualifying final, who have a double chance, against the elimination final winner. The losing team in the first semi-final is eliminated.

The winner of the second semi-final goes straight into the grand final, while the defeated team hosts a preliminary final against the winner of the first semi-final, with the victor of that claiming the other grand final spot.

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The Favourite: University

Top of the ladder with a 14-2 record and a percentage of 711, it would take a brave punter to tip against Uni in the finals.

Narrowly going down in last season’s Grand Final to North Fremantle, the minor premiers have responded by piling on some massive scores this season. Forwards Ashlee Hardisty and Esther Cooney have combined for 95 goals in a potent pairing up forward and will be crucial to their flag tilt.

The Challenger: Trinity Aquinas

With a league side sitting clear on top of the A Grade ladder, it is clear TA’s women’s program is flying at the moment.

Depth is very important in the finals, and the Boomers clearly have it in spades. Earning second place on the ladder and a double chance, they are in a great position to challenge for the flag in the coming month.

The Wildcard: Curtin Uni Wesley

The Tigers just knocked off the minor premiers by a point last week, handing them their first loss in ten weeks.

Despite finishing fourth on percentage, they will go into their elimination final against North Beach confident they can beat anyone in the competition.

The Road Ahead

Curtin Uni Wesley and North Beach will battle to avoid elimination in the 4th and 5th playoff. The two teams shared a win apiece in their meetings in the home-and-away season.

Trinity Aquinas take on reigning premier North Fremantle in the qualifying final, with the winner to face the dominant University in the second semi-final.

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The Favourite: Scarborough

Undefeated and top of the ladder with a percentage of 535, the Sea Eagles are the odds-on favourites to leap up into A Grade next year.

The minor premiers easily defeated Piara Waters by 94 points last week ahead of their week’s rest. Chloe Metcalf and Teah Bell are ones to watch in the finals, the latter kicking three goals in their big win over the Falcons.

The Challenger: Swan Athletic

They say a champion team will always beat a team of champions.

The Swans might not have the star power of some of the other B Grade finalists, but it hasn’t hurt them much, finishing the season in a comfortable second with 12 wins, 3 losses and a draw.

Undefeated in their last six games and just two wins away from returning to A Grade for the first time since 2023, Swan Athletic are the real deal.

The Wildcard: Bullcreek Leeming

The Bombers’ finals opponents will all have the same thing at the top of their whiteboards: stop Jacinta Stevens.

With a record 60 goals for the season, the forward has been destructive, with a best bag of eight goals coming against Kelmscott in Round 14.

A team that has struggled to find consistency; if the Bombers can keep supplying Stevens up forward, they will be hard to contain.

The Road Ahead

Last week, 5th-placed Ocean Ridge pulled off an impressive 9-point win over fellow finalists Bullcreek Leeming.

The loss meant Kwinana leapfrogged the Bombers into third spot and the double chance after they knocked off Rossmoyne by five points.

Bullcreek Leeming, however, get a chance of a rematch against the Eagles in an Elimination Final this week.

Following a forfeit from Collegians last week, the well-rested Swans will host Kwinana in the qualifying final to round out finals week one.

Swan Athletic have won both matchups against the Knights this year, winning by 31 points at home in their first meeting and by three points at Medina Oval in Round 12. 

The qualifying final winner will play minor premier Scarborough for a spot in the grand final the week after.

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The Favourite: Bayswater

Dropping just one game by a solitary point and finishing the regular season top of the ladder with a percentage of 844, the Blues have been in a league of their own this season.

Undefeated premiers in C3 last season, they have picked up where they left off in 2026 and look to be on track to go back-to-back.

The Challenger: Kingsway

Following promoted Bayswater up two grades this season, 2nd-placed Kingsway have renewed their rivalry with the Blues in 2026 after going down to them in last season’s Grand Final.

The Roos got one back on the minor premiers with a one-point win in Round 3, but a Grand Final victory would make the revenge taste a little bit sweeter.

The Wildcard: Cockburn Cobras

Finishing a game behind Kingsway and Ballajura, the Cobras aren’t far off the pace in C1.

They steadied a two-game losing streak heading into the final fortnight by winning their last two. The Cobras will be confident they can knock off Kalamunda in the first final, and they have already beaten the Royals this year if they face them in the first semi-final.

Cockburn just need a little bit of luck to fall their way, and they could make a very deep run into September.

The Road Ahead

Bayswater have the bye in finals week one and will be keenly watching the qualifying final between Kingsway and Ballajura to see who their opponents will be in week two.

Cockburn Cobras host Kalamunda in the elimination final. The Cougars qualified for finals narrowly thanks to a draw with Roleystone in Round 8, edging out Coolbellup for the last spot in the C1 finals.

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The Favourite: Canning Vale

Since losing to Whitford in Round 4, the Cougars have been on a tear, currently on an 11-game winning run heading into finals and finishing 10 points ahead of second-place Fremantle C.B.C.

Backed by their immense form and a home second semi-final, they are in the box seat to claim the C2 flag.

The Challenger: Fremantle C.B.C

Like their senior men’s side, the CBC women’s team is in a great position to challenge for the premiership, finishing the home-and-away season in second spot.

They will face Gosnells in the qualifying final for a chance to tackle Canning Vale for a spot in the Grand Final.

The Wildcard: Whitford

One of only two sides to have knocked off the top-ranked Cougars, the 4th-placed Warriors will need to have a perfect run to claim this season’s flag.

Willetton is their first obstacle in this week’s elimination final played at home.

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The Favourite: Yanchep

The PFL’s potential sleeping giant finished the home-and-away season with a commanding 15-1 record, earning them the minor premiership and a rest in finals week one.

The Challenger: Manning 

The Rippers are the only team with the blueprint to defeat the dominant Red Hawks, beating them back in Round 7.

If they can get past Safety Bay in their qualifying final this week, it will set them up for a strong flag tilt.

The Wildcard: Safety Bay

The Stingers easily accounted for their opponents in this week’s qualifying final back in Round 15, beating the Rippers by 54.

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The Favourite: Bayswater

Just like their league side, the Blues reserves have been a dominant force this season, narrowly claiming top spot by percentage.

They have earned a bye in week one of the finals after they kept Bullcreek Leeming scoreless in a 62-point win last week.

The Challenger: Jandakot

The Jets finished equal on wins with Bayswater and Koongamia to round out the top three of arguably the closest women’s league this season.

They even drew with Bayswater during the home-and-away season, setting up a tantalising finals rematch.

The Wildcard: Koongamia

Hardly even a wildcard, considering they finished equal on wins with the Blues and Jets, the Crows have only lost twice this season, and it seems ludicrous to write them off.

They enter their qualifying final this week against the Jets having won their past 10 games.