Recruits pack a punch
Dynamic duo have Tigers purring in top start to season
This year I thought I’d just take the leap of faith
Losing both the league’s most valuable player and leading goalscorer in a single off-season would be a devastating blow to most footy clubs but not at Hermit Park.
Alyssa Whiley has traded in her Tiger stripes for the blackand-white of Collingwood in the VFLW while 29-goal superstar Ellen Turner has swapped her footy boots for a manager’s clipboard while expecting her first child.
Their departures should have rocked the Tigers but the emergence of two key recruits has instead inspired an undefeated start to the campaign.
Maddie Moon had never played Aussie rules before her ADF posting to Townsville but has kicked five majors in her first two games.
The Wagga Wagga product is on pace to crack 40 goals this season in a tremendous start to her football career following 20 years in netball.
“I had six uncles who all played footy and they taught me how to kick a footy on the farm … but back then girls didn’t really play, so I took up netball,” Moon said.
“Once I moved up to Townsville I was like, OK, I think I’m ready to try something new.”
When a crop of Hermit Park players came on to base the 25-year-old Richmond supporter saw her chance to get involved.
“I saw their guernseys and I said ‘hey, can I join?’ They told me to come down to pre-season and since then I’ve been loving it,” she said.
“I’d been thinking about it a lot – I’ve always thought about it. I always wanted to play AFL but I just stayed in my comfort zone playing netball. This year I thought I’d just take the leap of faith.”
Moon’s long distance running ability has made an instant impact on the field.
Nearly all of the former New South Wales state 3000m and 15000m competitor’s five goals have come after receiving a handball and racing into the forward 50m. Few opponents have been able to keep pace, let alone stop her.
“Most of my success has come from the girls,” Moon said.
“They’ve been the ones who encouraged me on to the field and tell me exactly where to go. I think that’s where the success is coming from.”
Western Australian recruit Brianne Wilson is more than just stepping into the shoes of departed star Whiley.
She has also
Whiley’s old number.
“I heard that she was a great player and having her old number, too, I was thinking I did have pretty big shoes to fill,” Wilson admitted claimed
“I met her once at a pre-season before she headed down so hopefully I can fill that role.”
After five years playing in Perth, including time with Claremont Tigers in the nowdefunct WAWFL reserves, Wilson is ready for that responsibility.
She chose Townsville’s Tigers after a scroll through the club’s social media hinted at a culture that she could embrace.
“I rocked up to Tigers training in pre-season and found my feet,” she said. “I wasn’t too worried about making friends because I knew I’d make them through the footy team and that’s proven to be right.”