While many AFLW players head to Busselton or Broome to catch some off-season sun, West Coast’s Irish sisters – Grace and Niamh Kelly - pack their bags for a starkly different six months away.
A 21-hour flight to Galway is first on the agenda, followed by a two-hour drive to the sleepy county of Mayo, with temperatures reaching lows of three degrees during the winter months.
The sisters barely have a break between the AFLW and Gaelic seasons, and are lacing up the boots within weeks of being back in Ireland.
“It’s always nice to get home and play some Gaelic, but it definitely takes a little bit of time to transition back to the round ball again,” Niamh laughed.
“But the off-season this year was really good, it was good to get home and see our family and friends again.”
Arriving down under in October and landing straight into quarantine in South Australia, Niamh and Grace spent the next two weeks doing what pre-season training they could in their hotel room, thanks to an equipment delivery from the Adelaide Crows.
The fortnight also involved everything from watching Netflix to playing board games, which is something the duo are looking forward to experiencing with a group of 30 teammates in a hub.
“I think it will be a good thing for the group and help with the growth of the team as well, so really looking forward to heading over together and getting started,” Grace said.
“We’re going to bond so much during that hub experience, because obviously we’ll be training a lot and planning for the games, but we’re going to have so much down time as well.
“Hopefully we’ll play our own little games with the girls, maybe some card games and things like that, so it will be a fun bonding experience.”
Niamh is also readily anticipating a ‘bonding experience’ in the Melbourne hub, as the team prepare to play consecutive matches against St. Kilda, Geelong and Collingwood in the space of a fortnight.
“The hubs from rounds four to seven are definitely something different and something we won’t get to experience at home in Ireland, so I’m actually looking forward to it,” Niamh said.
“It’s a little bit of a working holiday for us, but it will be really nice to be with the girls constantly and to experience being in a professional environment 24/7.
“We’ll get three games in our mini-hub, so really looking forward to it.”
As for the season, the duo are hoping to improve on West Coast’s first two years in the competition, as well as leading the younger contingent of players both on and off-field.
“It’s our third year now so we’ve grown a bit more in confidence, we know the game a bit more now, so just leading the team a little bit more as well,” Niamh said.
“And the new girls, the draftees, bonding a bit more with them as well, and giving them the confidence to take on the game.
“As a team this year I think we’d like to develop competitively and just take each game as it comes.
“We’re really looking forward to the games, we love pre-season training but you can’t beat the games and the atmosphere and stuff like that.
“So we’re really looking forward to having a game each week and getting set each week to play with the girls.”
