STANTON TALL: JAMIE’S TOUGH CALL WAS A SIGN OF A CLUB CHAMPION
THE most stressful decision of Jamie Stanton’s life has turned out to be the most rewarding.
Starting her career with the Brisbane Lions, the Gold Coast product played in two losing grand finals before being lured to North Melbourne for the 2019 AFLW season.
And she had planned to stay there until the Suns came calling.
Last night, the 24-year-old was rewarded for her most prolific season to date and crowned the Suns’ inaugural women’s Club Champion – ratifying the decision which nearly tore her apart.
“The original plan was to move to North Melbourne and stay at North Melbourne but due to circumstances that came up with my life after footy and the staff the Suns signed on, it all changed,” she said.
“It was the hardest decision of my life leaving North Melbourne but I sit here and think how thrilled I am to be a Suns AFLW player.
“My time at the Lions allowed me to get close to Lakey (head coach David Lake) and he’s a significant mentor of mine who I had conversations with regularly while at North so when he was announced head coach, it became a lot harder to turn down the offer from the Suns.”
The midfielder led the count from Round 1 and couldn’t be tracked down, going on to win with 187 total votes, seven votes clear of Lauren Ahrens and Jade Pregelj
in joint second place. Stanton was also recognised by her peers, winning the Players’ Player award but even surprised herself with how prolifically she polled.
“There were a few games I polled in which I didn’t think I’d feature at all,” she said.
“It was a close count which is good in the end and demonstrates our team’s depth.”
Having achieved individual excellence, the 2020 AllAustralian squad member said she craved team success.
“As an individual, you sit here and say that you want to be the best player you can possibly be but you don’t play for individual accolades,” she said. “I want to win a premiership with the Suns.”
The awards were conducted over Zoom because of COVID-19 restrictions.
Soon after they finished, Stanton was surprised by Gold Coast men’s captain Jarrod Witts who delivered champagne and flowers to her door.
Coach David Lake said Stanton was “nowhere near her limits” and predicted his star onballer to improve again in 2021. “Jamie looked to set a standard for us all of what was required to compete at AFLW level,” he said.