Dee Heslop was one of 10 Suns AFLW debutants against GWS on Saturday

Unlike her teammates, Dee Heslop had days to process that she would be making her AFLW debut.

UNLIKE her teammates, Dee Heslop had days to process that she would be making her AFLW debut.

While all of her colleagues learned of their selection fate on Thursday morning via a phone call from head coach David Lake, Heslop’s whirlwind week began on Tuesday night at training.

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Heslop and her teammates had just completed their warm up and were about to start a ball drill when Lake approached her.

GOLD COAST, AUSTRALIA - FEBRUARY 04: Dee Heslop during a Gold Coast Suns AFLW training session on February 04, 2020 in Gold Coast, Australia. (Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images)

“He came over and was explaining a few things to me and then said ‘I want you to have a really good training session tonight and really smash it because I’m playing you this weekend,’” she said.

“None of the other girls knew if they’d made the team at this point so I had to keep it to myself.

“We started running the drill and I completely missed a ground ball and I just looked at him (David Lake) and started laughing.”

Luckily for the 18-year-old, the slight slip up didn’t prove fatal as she was named among 20 others in the Suns inaugural AFLW side.

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Travelling with the team to Sydney on Friday, Heslop admitted she was overcome with nerves on the morning of the game.

“I don’t like to think about footy until the game of the day so Friday night was pretty quiet,” she said.

“I was rooming with Dunny (Hannah Dunn) and we just chatted about other girls stuff and got a good sleep in but woke up the next day pretty nervous.

“I had this big rush of nerves waking up and on the bus to the ground but I managed to calm myself down once we got into the change rooms and started warming up.

“I had in my head that I was mentally preparing for the worse and the weather was going to be terrible and crazy but it calmed my nerves a bit once we got there and saw it all.”

Lacing up her left boot before her right as is her pre-game tradition, Heslop made her grand entrance to the AFLW arena coming off the bench during the first quarter.

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - FEBRUARY 08: Dee Heslop of the Suns takes a mark during the round one AFLW match between the Greater Western Sydney Giants and the Gold Coast Suns at Blacktown International Sportspark on February 08, 2020 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Mark Evans/Getty Images)

“I remember going to get the ball and getting taken in a high tackle so I was pretty lucky with that but then had to quickly think about where to kick it,” Heslop said of her first ever possession.

As her parents watched on in the stands, Heslop played an important role in the Suns’ near historic victory.

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But unlike some of her teammates who paused to acknowledge loved ones in the crowd, Heslop remained focused on the task at hand.

“Every time I walked to the (interchange) gate I put my head down,” she joked.

The pure lift in intensity from QAFLW football was at first a shock, but the Yeronga Devils product vowed her side would be back bigger and better this weekend.

“The game was a lot faster and more physical but we have so much support from the older girls around us and teammates you can really trust so you can back yourself in,” she said.

“It was amazing, just being able to run out there in Suns’ colours for the first time and their first ever team.

“There are a lot more rounds to come so hopefully we start getting wins on the board.”