Jess Foley still has to pinch herself that she’s now an AFLW player.
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The former Australian Opal and Wodonga basketball export took up football last year at amateur level in Adelaide and never imagined it would lead to her being drafted.
Foley was taken at pick 30 by the Crows in Tuesday’s AFLW draft, reuniting her with former Opals teammate Erin Phillips.
“It was a really exciting day and it was really nice to see all the support from everyone,” Foley said.
“I didn’t get into football thinking I’d be playing AFLW and I do quite a lot of things outside of football.
“It’s turned out this way and I’ve been given an opportunity which I’m really excited about.”
“I loved footy growing up, but there wasn’t a lot of female leagues and their certainly wasn’t any in Albury-Wodonga.
“It wasn’t until I got back out there last year and watched the AFLW over the last couple of seasons that I even started thinking about footy.”
Foley joined Sturt in the SANFLW this season and was dominant in the ruck, which soon brought her into AFLW calculations.
“I was a bit daunted when they said I’d be playing ruck, but there wasn’t a lot of others around me with height,” she said.
“It turned out to be a blessing in disguise, it was an ideal position for me.”
Foley commences pre-season with the club on November 14.
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