Adelaide Crows recruit Courtney Gum reveals what it was like lining up against her old GWS teammates on Saturday
After retiring from the game nine months ago, AFLW veteran Courtney Gum returned to the field for her new club Adelaide on Saturday. She reveals what it was like facing her former GWS teammates.
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Sure, there were nerves, but as Courtney Gum stood in Richmond Oval’s changerooms on Saturday and pulled on a Crows guernsey for the first time, what was really coursing through her veins was excitement.
Nine months earlier, the 38-year-old veteran midfielder/forward had happily retired from AFLW football after two seasons at GWS and was embracing whatever life, motherhood and her work as a physiotherapist was throwing her way.
But life’s all about its twists, which came via an unexpected call from the Crows when the club lost midfielder Hannah Martin to a torn ACL in June last year.
That phone conversation was what brought Gum to Richmond Oval on Saturday, to play against her old side in a trial game as the clock rapidly ticks down to AFLW season four, with round one commencing on February 8.
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“If I think back, 100 per cent – or maybe I have to say 99 – I thought I was retiring, I was very ready,” Gum said.
“But on Saturday, it’s funny, I just remembered that I love playing footy.
“I love competing and ... on Saturday, I just felt really excited to be coming out and doing my thing.”
Despite Adelaide losing to the Giants by 17 points, Gum was thrilled to have scored one of the Crows’ three goals.
It’s her first major in the Adelaide tricolours.
“It was great to get a goal out the back, but more importantly it was really nice to have the girls get around it,” she said.
“They just looked really happy for me, so that was really great.”
Gum said the scoreline wasn’t the important factor in Saturday’s trial game; instead, it was a great opportunity to have a crack, blow out some cobwebs and experiment with team structures under real game pressure.
“In terms of the forward line, it’s coming together really nicely, and I think the most important thing is that we’re communicating out there,” she said.
“Stevie-Lee (Thompson) … her voice is really great, she’s a senior player out there now.
“DP (Danielle Ponter) is just fantastic, she makes something out of nothing.
Gum was also impressed by fellow new Crows member Najwa Allen, whose contested work stood out against GWS.
“She always impresses me … you see it all the time at training, sometimes she comes out with the ball when you’re not expecting it,” Gum said.
“And Madison Newman (in defence), her kick’s amazing, but her vision and finding free players is also amazing.
“It’s so exciting.”
The Crows travel to Perth on Friday for an official pre-season game against Fremantle on Saturday night, before their season gets underway against Brisbane at Hickey Park on February 8.