Canberra duo to umpire 2021 AFLW Grand Final

The GIANTS may have missed out on making the AFLW finals, but AFL NSW/ACT will still be represented at Saturday’s Grand Final.

Both Nic McGinness (Field) and Ben Fely (Boundary) from Canberra have been selected to umpire the biggest game on the AFLW calendar.

Having officiated in the 2019 AFLW Grand Final, McGinness is looking to back up his performance in the 2021 AFLW Grand Final.

McGinness is an experienced campaigner having umpired since 2009, saying Saturday will be about purely enjoying the moment.

“I’m really looking forward to getting to the Adelaide Oval on Grand Final day again,” he said.

“I’ll soak up the occasion and focus on the job at hand, which is umpiring the game.

“It has been a pleasure to be involved in the 2021 AFLW competition.

It’s building momentum every year and the play is going from strength to strength.”

After sitting the bench for the 2018 AFLW Grand Final, Ben Fely will umpire his first AFLW Grand Final in 2021.

Fely started umpiring in Canberra in 2015 and has been rewarded for his commitment and dedication to achieve the opportunity to umpire at the elite level.

“It is an honour to be appointed to the game,” Fely said.

“I’ve put in a lot of hard work and I’m really proud to boundary umpire during the biggest game AFLW season.

“This is a great endorsement of umpiring in Canberra and shows there is a clear pathway for all Canberra based umpires to the elite level.”

AFL NSW/ACT has a large umpiring cohort with more than 1,531 registered umpires at a community level.

It’s never too late to register, anyone interested in joining the ranks can visit umpire.afl to learn more.