Annalyse Lister is the embodiment of what motivation and drive can ultimately achieve: proving that it is never too late to chase a dream.
After watching the first season of AFL Women's, Lister knew she had to “give it a crack”.
Playing her first season in 2017, the determined Perth native arrived at Darebin Falcon's training alongside the likes of Daisy Pearce and Lauren Arnell, and the GIANTS' own Jess Dal Pos.
“When you see them all down there, you probably learn the hard way that you have a long way to go, but I just love the sport and stuck with it,” she said.
With a clear aspiration to be part of the AFLW “in any way possible”, when an invitation to travel to Sydney for an interview with the GIANTS, the 29-year-old leapt at the chance.
Not unlike several of her teammates, Lister says she immediately loved the club.
“With everyone making an effort to come and say hello, I settled in pretty quickly," she said.
Growing up in Western Australia, Lister made the move to Sydney to study physiotherapy at the University of Sydney before moving to Melbourne for five years.
The disciplined midfielder credits her love and passion for the game for making the decision to move her life again.
“Obviously being away from family and friends proves a little hard at times, but doing something and having this you sort of cop that, especially with the benefits of being given a shot of playing AFLW,” Lister said.
With many players moving their lives interstate to play, there is a deep understanding within the team of the position some of the players are in.
Lister credits the culture and environment created within the club with a lot of girls coming from similar backgrounds.
“They make an extra effort because they know what it’s like to pick up (and move) your life as well,” she said.
Lister says the support doesn’t stop with the women’s team. With AFL veterans Heath Shaw, Shane Mumford and Sam Reid working with the club as specialist coaches, and Matt Buntine taking up a player welfare role, it's put in perspective how “special the club is".
Lister, who is every bit versatile in the sporting world as she is competitive, is at the GIANTS to be the best player she can be.
“I’m one of those people who just wants to keep hitting the highest that I can possibly can – I’m not here playing for fun. I’m generally a competitive person,” she said.
Coming with a professional background in physiotherapy and having played in the Australian Hockey League for Victoria, Lister knows her body well which shapes as a great advantage for the new recruit.
“I know my own body well enough to know I can’t go and do 40 minutes of extra kicking, because I won’t have a hamstring afterwards,” she said.
“I obviously will make the most of every session but be quite conscious of training loads.”
Aware that playing for the GIANTS is “not an opportunity that comes around very often”, Lister wants to spend the 2020 season enjoying the experience and trying to achieve the most she can.
