Experienced defender Jess Duffin has put her hand up for an AFLW recall after impressing in North Melbourne’s VFLW clash with Darebin on the weekend.

While the Kangaroos were defeated by 16 points, Duffin finished the game with a game-high 27 disposals, as well as 10 marks.

"Duff was great. She was probably the best on-field and across half back she provided us with a lot of leadership and structure behind the ball," VFLW senior coach Steph Binder told North Media.

"She pretty much intercepted everything that came near her, and she definitely didn’t do herself any harm in putting her hand up to get back into the senior side this week."

After an impressive performance at VFLW level last week, Ella Maurer limped from the ground early in the game with an ankle injury.

Although Maurer wasn’t cleared to run out the game, Binder says the injury doesn’t look as bad as first feared.

"Ella went off pretty early on, but I think she’s pulled up quite well," Binder said.

"I don’t know if she’ll bounce back straight away for this weekend, but hopefully she won’t be on the sidelines for too long."

Tess Craven played her first game of competitive football since the Round 1 AFLW clash with Geelong earlier this year, and impressed as she split her time between the midfield and forward line.

She finished the game with 14 disposals, and Binder says she’ll only improve as she becomes reacquainted with match play.

"Tess is just a natural footballer with really good skills. She was a little bit rushed on occasion, but it’s easy to put that down to the fact she hasn’t played in a while," Binder said.

"She’s certainly not out of place at senior level, let alone VFLW level. She offered some glimpses into how silky she really is and she’s going to be a great footballer for many years to come."

Perri King continued her early trend of winning the tackle count for the Kangaroos, as her pressure around the contest saw her finish with nine for the game.

Binder says the improvement King has shown in recent weeks is pleasing for both the AFLW and VFLW programs.

"Perri’s tackling pressure is a huge strength, she worked a little bit through the middle but also up forward,” Binder said.

"Her biggest focus coming into the game was her two-way running, and the match fitness she’s gaining is really seeing that improve quickly. 

"The next aspect of her game is probably having that little bit more composure and really becoming efficient when entering that forward 50."

Britt Gibson continued her recovery with another solid performance in the forward line, but she struggled to impose her presence on the contest against Darebin.

Binder says while Gibson has played forward in her return to competitive football, she’s not ruling out a move to the back line for the veteran.

"At this stage she’s probably going to play more forward, but we know how good she can look behind the ball as well. That’s a conversation to have with the AFLW coaches to see where they want her to be exposed," Binder said.

"She started deep in the forward line and then we moved her into the half-forward line to get her working a bit higher up the ground and building that tank.

"When she gets near it she looks really dangerous and you can see her experience coming through. With more games she’ll keep getting back to where she’s been in the past and she’ll be able to show everyone why she’s been such a good player for so long."

After last week’s defeat to Darebin, Binder tasked her team with being more courageous with the ball, and while this clash also ended in a loss, she says there are steady signs of improvement in how she wants her side to play.

"We showed glimpses of that courage. I think we really struggled with it in the first quarter, but after that we started looking more for that lateral kick. Once we got the ball into some space we moved it with a lot more freedom," she said.

"We were able to finish the game with 30 inside 50s, we just didn’t have the composure when we went in.

"We need to swivel the head and open the game up when we’ve got the opportunity, we just don’t do it as consistently as we need to. There’s glimpses of what we want to be able to do though, and that’s positive."

North Melbourne  1.2 (8)
Darebin Falcons   3.6 (24)

AFLW-listed player stats

Jess Duffin - 27 disposals, 10 marks
Perri King - 12 disposals, 9 tackles
Tess Craven - 14 disposals, 6 inside 50s
Britt Gibson - 5 disposals
Ella Maurer - N/A (injured in first quarter)

VFLW-listed player stats (selected)

Annabel Scott - 26 disposals, 4 tackles, 4 clearances
Sarah Skinner - 20 disposals, 6 inside 50s
Jess Mourney - 15 disposals, 1 goal
Brooke Slaney - 13 disposals, 8 tackles