Pippa Smyth finds out on Thursday if she is a chance to make her AFL Women’s debut with the GWS Giants in Melbourne on Saturday.
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Whether she is named in the playing squad or not, the Nelson Bay 22-year-old is relishing every minute of being part of an elite sporting club.
Smyth has only played the sport for three years but in October was drafted to the AFLW.
The personal trainer has endured, and enjoyed, a rigorous pre-season and has received encouraging feedback from the coaching staff but knows she is still a new kid on the block.
“Everything is going well,” Smyth said.
“The training itself, I absolutely love, and to be able to train as an elite athlete has been pretty incredible.
“I’ve been really nervous leading up to the [two] trial games, I think because I’ve got so much more to do and improve on and I can give so much more.
“I just hope I get the opportunity to play and to do that. I’ve done alright but there’s a lot more I know I need to work on.”
Smyth has been a stand-out in the Black Diamond AFL women’s competition and gained national attention by blitzing the fitness testing component of the AFLW combine last year.
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At the time, Giants director of coaching and AFLW coach Alan McConnell described Smyth as “innately a lot of raw talent and athleticism”.
The travelling squad for Saturday’s match against Melbourne will be posted on the Giants’ website at 6pm on Thursday.
“To be honest, I’m not feeling overly confident but I’ll be happy if I get a run this year,” Smyth said.
“I’ve only played for a short amount of time and come from a league that’s only just been developed, so working on skills and getting a game is going to be a big highlight for me [this year].”
