Brenna Tarrant first had the urge to play football at the age of 9, and it was four years later that she started playing competitive Aussie Rules for the local Emu Plains club.
With the rise of the AFLW, Brenna’s passion for the sport and dream to shape a professional career from it, has turned into reality. Last year, waiting in her school library during the AFLW Draft, there was the fear of not knowing when her name would be called and as the picks ahead of her were taken.
“I felt it fading away a little bit, but you’ve got to have hope. You’ve got to think ‘If my name gets called out, I have a chance at playing AFLW’. If it doesn’t, well I have to wait another year,” Brenna said.
“I was just clinging to hope really – I felt like I was hanging on by a thread.”
The nerves were worth it for Brenna, after 5 years playing the game her dreams came to fruition, as the Melbourne Demons selected her as the No. 72 pick, meaning she would join the roster for the 2020 season.
As an 18-year-old, Brenna has made the move to Melbourne to chase her AFLW dreams. With a mature perspective and ambitious mindset, she has been able to overcome the challenges of moving interstate, leaving family and meeting a new group of friends and teammates. Despite the shift in location and lifestyle, Brenna has maintained her humble nature.
“I never want to be that player that thinks they’re better than everyone – I never want to see myself as that person,” Brenna said.
“(I want people to see me) as a very grounded person, someone that is just as human as everyone else.”
