Essendon has decided not to offer inaugural AFLW Senior Coach Natalie Wood a new contract beyond the 2026 season.
Wood and the Club have had respectful conversations throughout the week regarding her contract, and agreed to wait until after today’s game to inform players, coaches and staff.
Appointed in March 2022, Wood became Essendon’s first AFLW Senior Coach and one of only two female senior coaches in the competition at the time. During her tenure, she became the first woman to coach 50 AFLW games.
She brought coaching experience as an assistant in the Western Bulldogs and Geelong AFLW programs, alongside a five-premiership playing career at Melbourne University and the Darebin Falcons.
Wood led the establishment of Essendon’s inaugural AFLW team within a compressed timeframe after the season’s start date was brought forward, bringing together a new playing group and setting the foundations for its standards, culture and development. Under Wood, Essendon reached finals in its second and third seasons, in 2023 and 2024.
Developing a young playing group has been central to her work, and she has supported players including Emily Gough, Steph Wales, Mia Busch and Amy Gaylor to grow into their roles at AFLW level.
Essendon CEO Tim Roberts thanked Wood for the role she played in building the Club’s AFLW program.
“Natalie has been part of our AFLW journey from the very beginning, and that will always be an important part of her connection to this Club. This was a difficult decision, and we thank her for the role she has played in our history,” Roberts said.
“When we entered the competition in 2022, Natalie set the standards and culture of our team, and our back-to-back finals in 2023 and 2024 reflected that work.
“This season has been challenging, and we have fallen short of what we wanted on field. We believe a change is the right step for the next phase of our program.
“Natalie has handled this with real integrity, and her commitment to coaching out the season says a lot about her and how much she cares about the players.
“We thank Natalie for everything she has given the Club over five seasons, and we wish her all the best for the next step in her football journey.”
Wood thanked the AFLW program for its support and commitment during her time at Essendon.
“Building an AFLW program from the ground up takes an enormous collective effort. I’m proud to have led that work and supported our players to grow as footballers and people,” Wood said.
“It has been a privilege to be Essendon’s inaugural AFLW Senior Coach. Thank you to the players, coaches, staff and supporters who have shared this journey, and to my family for being alongside me through it all."
The Club will now begin its search for a new AFLW Senior Coach. At the same time, it will assess every part of the program to make sure it continues to grow with the competition and is positioned to improve on and off the field.
Wood will coach the team in the final game of the season against Collingwood at Windy Hill on Sunday, November 1.
