AFL Canberra are Ready to Rumble at Robbo
By Sam Burge and Jarryd Rowley
As the AFL Canberra Women’s representative team prepare to take on the North East Border representative team, they look sharp and the morale is high.
The game will take place on neutral territory in Wagga Wagga on the Queen’s birthday long weekend in a great showpiece for women’s footy.
The strength of the AFL Canberra Women’s competition will be seriously tested when they come up against women who have grown up playing in footy heartland on the Victoria/NSW border.
All AFL Canberra senior clubs will be represented with selected players coming from every club. The game will provide a great opportunity for players to prove themselves at a representative level.
As well as a good mix of players, the team will have a mix of coaches. Tuggeranong’s Leo Lahey will lead the way in conjunction with Queanbeyan’s Adrian Pavese and Belconnen’s Scott Reid as his offsiders. Injured Gungahlin player Kaitlin Dobing will also be part of the coaching team.
Not only is the match a great opportunity for players and coaches to prove their wares, it’s an opportunity for rival players and coaches to come together and learn off each other to improve the overall quality in a region.
Belconnen Magpies gun Maggie Gorham is looking forward to playing with players that are usually trying to stop her. She described representing AFL Canberra as a privilege. “It’s pretty cool, there’s a good range of girls from each team. Having come together with the top girls from each side, it’s a massive privilege!”
Gorham is confident the girls have come together well. “From the first training it was like a club training pretty much… I think just knowing how each other play is massive, even the little things like who are left footers, and things like that have been massive! We have really gelled since our first session together!”
Maggie is feeling confident about how the girls will perform. “I’m feeling a bit too confident I think, I’m excited, because we have been training for the last 5 weeks and we have kind of built something here and I think. Canberra doesn’t really get enough recognition for how good our women’s footy really is, I’m really excited to show that Canberra chicks can play footy!”
The girls have been training for the last five weeks in preparation for next Saturday’s match and will have one more meeting together on Wednesday before having a Jumper presentation on Friday evening.
AFL Canberra vs AFL North East Border
Saturday, 12th June, 2.00pm
Robertson Oval, Wagga Wagga
Live Streamed through the AFL Canberra Facebook page and Cluch.TV
AFL Canberra Representative Team
Kate McGrath (Qbn), Alexia Hamilton (Qbn), Anita Manning (Qbn), Jessica Workman (Gun), Samantha Rubino (Gun), Erin Needham (Gun), Rachael Friend (Ain), Renee Friend (Ain), Maddy Holloway (Ain), Emylee Hawke (Ain), Kate Greenacre (Tug), Amy Dwyer (Tug), Kiarna Woolley-Blain (Tug), Hayley Macdonald (Tug), Catherine Brown (East), Cambridge McCormick (East), Cecilia Maher (East), Meg McLaughlin (East), Maggie Gorham (Bel), Natasha McKay (Bel), Jacqueline Spence (Bel), Maddison Dwyer (Bel), Amber Allen (Bel), Ally Morphett (Bel)
