Five GIANTS have been named in the NAB AFL Women’s state of origin match to take place at Etihad Stadium on September 2.
Erin McKinnon, Emma Swanson and Renee Tomkins have been selected in the 20-player Allies squad while new recruit Alicia Eva and reigning Gabrielle Trainor Medallist Jess Dal Pos will line up for Victoria.
Dal Pos said she’s honoured to be pulling on the Big V and line up against some of her GIANTS teammates.
“Before AFLW started, playing for your state was the highest honour we could achieve and some of my previous Victoria jumpers are amongst my most treasured possessions,” she said.
“It had sort of been forgotten about with the whirlwind of AFLW so it’s really nice to come back and don the Big V, I’m very excited about it.
“I’m a little bit terrified of playing against some of my GIANTS teammates as I know what they are capable of.
“If I float through the midfield I might try and trick Erin McKinnon into tapping the footy to me because she’s going to be pretty dominant.”
The All Australian midfielder said one of the most exciting aspects of the game was that it replaced the All Stars game which had seen the best women’s players in the country represent Melbourne and the Western Bulldogs.
“We’ll get so much more interest from supporters of other footy clubs, everyone will have an interest,” she said.
“Everyone loves Origin, we’ve seen it with rugby league and we’ll have the whole of Victoria behind us rather than just the supporters of Melbourne and the Bulldogs.
“It really opens the door for a different market of people to come and watch the game.”
Initial squads for the two teams were released on Tuesday, based on the 2017 Virgin Australian AFL Women’s All Australian squad, with more players to be named as the game draws closer.
The AFLW State of Origin match will take place in the bye week between round 23 and the first week of finals.
NAB AFL WOMEN’S STATE OF ORIGIN SQUADS
Victoria
Sarah Perkins (Adelaide), Kaitlyn Ashmore (Brisbane Lions), Brianna Davey, Darcy Vescio, Alison Downie, Danielle Hardiman, Nicola Stevens (Carlton), Sarah D'Arcy, Jess Cameron (Collingwood), Kara Donnellan (Fremantle) Alicia Eva, Jess Dal Pos (GWS), Karen Paxman, Daisy Pearce, Melissa Hickey, Lily Mithen, Jasmine Grierson (Melbourne), Ellie Blackburn, Emma Kearney and Hannah Scott (Western Bulldogs)
Allies
Chelsea Randall, Erin Phillips, Ebony Marinoff, Courtney Cramey (Adelaide), Sabrina Frederick-Traub, Emily Bates (Brisbane Lions), Emma Zielke, Jess Wuetschner, Kate McCarthy, Leah Kaslar, Sam Virgo (Brisbane Lions), Tayla Harris (Carlton), Emma King (Collingwood), Ebony Antonio, Kirby Bentley, Dana Hooker (Fremantle), Erin McKinnon, Emma Swanson, Renee Tomkins (GWS) and Elise O'Dea (Melbourne)
