Local duo the latest AFLW draftees

LAST Wednesday night the dreams of many girls around the country were realised as the AFLW Draft was held in Melbourne. 

Among the group of lucky draftees were locals Grace Matser of Korumburra and Yasmin Duursma of Foster. 

Speaking to the Sentinel-Times last week, the girls explained how it felt to hear their name called. 

“It was so unreal, I can’t really describe it, it was so good with mum and dad there as well, everyone was a bit teary, I’m just excited and really keen to get started,” Matser said. 

“It’s hard to believe, you sort of have a bit of a feeling it’s going to happen, you’ve obviously had your conversations with the club, but it doesn’t feel confirmed until you hear your name,” Duursma said.

“Then it’s a bit of a high you don’t realise how crazy and how special it is, I don’t have any words.”

Matser spoke on what inspired her to take up the sport, and opened up on her football journey that started with a text.

“I just got a text message from Wendy from the local youth girls, they were starting the first ever team in Korumburra-Bena, so I thought it’d be fun to get into it and went from there,” she said. 

She became part of the inaugural Giants youth girls’ team as a 14-year-old and never looked back, earning selection to the interleague team in her first season.

After showing out in interleague for South Gippsland, Matser was selected in the Gippsland Power squad, although as she says she was still quite new to it all.  

“I got into Gippy Power, but I was a bit too young to play so I just ran water the whole year,” she said. 

From water-girl to the big leagues, the Korumburra local looked back on her sensational footy journey to date. 

“The first big milestone was getting into Power when I was 14, like I said before I was too young to play but I loved going and being a part of the group.

“I then played through and won most professional as a bottom-ager, which is one of my proudest footy achievements, I really pride myself on that, I also won most consistent in my under 19 year.

“Getting into Vic Country under 16s and being able to play all the way through to under 19s was also really good.”

A consummate professional, Matser also played at Casey before taking her talents to Collingwood, where she played through the 2022 VFLW season to be best first year player. 

She has also been getting a kick locally, playing for the Bass Coast Breakers. 

The former Magpie is a talented ruck/forward who loves to use her tank to make an impact around the ground, and add a point of difference being left-handed and left footed.

Matser was taken at pick 51 in Wednesday night’s draft by North Melbourne.

She sounded off on her pre-draft experience. 

“Over the month leading up to the draft I had one club contact me, then on the Monday before the draft, I spoke to North Melbourne, I didn’t really know what was going to happen.
“They sort of didn’t tell me that they were, or weren’t going to choose me, so it was a bit of a long wait until pick 51, it was a pretty nervous few days waiting for my name to get called.”

Luckily, her patience paid off and now officially as a Kangaroo, Matser holds strong goals for her AFLW career. 

“I want to get into training and keep that professional drive to be the best I can, also hopefully I can inspire some younger boys or girls that want to go down the pathway as well,” she said.

“Just be a role model I guess to everyone down our way.”

She also mentioned those she’d like to thank.

“So many people, obviously mum and dad they’ve always driven me everywhere, I’ll have to mention my brother, I always watched him when I was younger,” she said. 

“All the people at Gippsland Power, Collingwood and the Breakers, there’s so many people, everyone that’s helped me, friends and family.”

As for Duursma, she joins her older brother Xavier at Port Adelaide after he was taken at pick 18 in 2018 AFL Draft. 

Port Adelaide’s newest local reminisced on what got her into the game.

“I’ve got a big footy family, all my brothers and dad are involved heavily in footy, I’ve always been around it, but eventually Gippsland Power invited me to do a pre-season,” she said. 

“I thought yeah I’ll just do it for some extra fitness for netball and I picked up the footy and kept going with it.” 

Duursma plays her footy on the wing, with the ability to play in defence and loves to use her running power and endurance to burn her opponents.
Having only started playing the game in 2020, the Foster export’s journey may be short, but it is certainly not starved of accolades. 

With the virus holding her to just one game in 2020, Duursma’s first full season of football came last year, and she sure made up for lost time, representing Victoria Country in the under 17s. 

The young star’s career continued to rise in 2022, as she was announced captain of Gippsland Power and Victoria Country under 18s.

Duursma gave an insight into her short but sparkling career and the process pre-draft.

“These past few years have been happening quick, getting into state teams and into the swing of the draft and that sort of talk, I’ve worked pretty hard to get where I am now,” she said.

“There was a period where nothing had been confirmed when we didn’t know the rules around year 12 students and the dates of the draft, it was pretty hectic.

“After it was all confirmed it was easy to just sit down and have a chat to the clubs about your plan and what you’re looking to do.
“I had to make a decision whether to nominate South Australia or Victoria, so it was a bit crazy.”

After nominating South Australia, Duursma was selected at pick 45 by Port Adelaide, a club her brother Xavier has represented on 53 occasions. 
Duursma said she looks forward to improving towards her first taste of ALFW action and sends her thanks to those who have supported her. 

“I’d love to get a game this year, I want to develop more as a player because I feel like I have got a lot of development left in me, I want to keep getting better and be one of the best,” she said. 

“I’d definitely like to thank my family for their support through the draft period when it got crazy and there was a bit too much pressure.

“And Gippsland Power for getting me into footy and helping me get to where I am now.”

Both girls have done the region, their clubs and their families proud and have now started pre-season training in anticipation for the next ALFW season beginning on the last weekend in August.