Code jumpers leap at
Former Supercats line up in VFLW grand final
FORMER basketballers Anna Teague and Maddy McMahon will become two-time premiership teammates if the Cats’ VFLW side wins tomorrow, eight years after the Geelong Supercats claimed the Big V state championship title.
Teague and McMahon (nee Taylor) starred on the court in 2010, sharing in 64 points across a 2-0 finals series win over Hume City to help bring a flag to Geelong.
“It was a really good bunch of girls; really competitive people that wanted to make each other better. There were some pretty good members from that year,” Teague said, referring to the likes of Candice Rogers, Jae Conn, Kylie Morrissy, Sarah Hyland, Vicki King, Sophie Templeton and Nathasha Daffy.
McMahon grew up playing basketball as a junior and then with the Big V state championship Supercats until motherhood called. Teague juggled school rowing with basketball in her teenage years, but “basketball was generally the priority as well”.
Despite Auskick and a year with the boys as an 11year-old, Teague said footy was never really in the picture.
“We may have played basketball like we play footy,” Teague quipped.
“But no, it certainly wasn’t anywhere in the thinking, that’s for sure.
“I loved the idea of it, but I didn’t think it was possible.”
But being paid to play sport was a dream for both and stints with Bendigo in the WNBL lit the flame of potentially taking basketball as far as they could.
“Growing up, it was an aspiration to try and pursue basketball,” Teauge said.
“I think at one point when I was 16 when I said, ‘ I’m going to play for Australia’, but I never thought that would happen.
“Playing at Bendigo there were more opportunities there and then in 2011 the Geelong SEABL team started up, so it was good that it opened up pathways here — they didn’t have to go to Melbourne or Bendigo or places like that.”
McMahon turned to GFL netball after the birth of her first child, while Teague eventually became a SEABL captain — that was until the Geelong Cats’ talent ID day in November 2016.
“I think it (football) had been mentioned among a few mates early on, when it was floating around social media airways, but it was probably more post-season when I thought, ‘ Yeah, why not?’,” Teague recalled.
“My mates were saying, ‘Go on, you’d be good at this’, so I thought I’d give it a go and that was that.
“I remember being put in a group with all of the crosscoders — and it was pretty evident we were all cross-coders. Having a kick, they just said, ‘ Go for goal’ and I thought, ‘I don’t even know how far I can kick’.
“The 2km time trial wasn’t overly enjoyable. I felt like I was at an under-10s tryout day for basketball.”
Secretly hoping she’d get picked up, Teague received a call from coach Paul Hood to return to training in the preseason squad.
Six months later, she was playing at GMHBA Stadium in front of family and friends as the Cats prevailed 9.4 (58) to 0.2 (2) over Box Hill — ironically, a similar team to the one they’ll face in tomorrow’s decider — with McMahon watching in the stands.
“I remember hearing about the talent ID day and I was heavily pregnant at the time, but I remember thinking, ‘I wish I could go to that’,” she said.
“Then I watched their first game here and I was so jealous.”
Teague added: “The atmosphere was really good and they’d made a banner for us and all our families and friends were there.
“It was just really exciting because it was the start of something so wonderful.”
Just over a year on, Teague had been rookie listed by the Melbourne Demons to play in the 2018 AFLW season, while McMahon pursued the new opportunities in football.
Tomorrow, they’ll attempt to add a second premiership to their friendship — albeit, they’ll have to share this one with a lot more teammates.
“The sheer size of a group in footy is so different to basketball; basketball is pretty intimate,” Teague said.
“But in terms of goals and what you want as a group, going into a grand final, everyone’s pumped and excited (just the same).
“You can liken that to our 2010 team; we were such good mates and I think that’s why it stands out as being so special.”
McMahon added: “I’m especially proud of this team.
“I just feel like we're really cohesive as a group and it’s just such a good group to be a part of.”