Kalinda Howarth broke a sporting ban to discover AFLW
If not for breaking a parental imposed sporting ban in year seven, Kalinda Howarth wouldn’t be playing AFLW for the Suns.
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IF not for breaking a parental imposed sporting ban in year seven, Kalinda Howarth wouldn’t be playing AFLW for the Suns.
In her last year of primary school, Howarth was asked to attend a trial looking to unearth the Coast’s next female football talents.
Despite growing up in a rugby league background and not knowing the first thing about Aussie rules, not even a sporting ban imposed by her dad could stop Howarth attending the session where she went on to be selected in the Gold Coast Sunfire academy.
“He wasn’t very happy because I was grounded from sport at the time but as soon as he saw me play and realised I was all right at it he came around,” she said.
“I didn’t really want to go (to the academy) but dad said ‘if you wanted to play in that school carnival, you’ve got to commit to being selected’ so I’ve played ever since then.”
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From soccer to basketball, touch footy and oztag, Howarth played just about everything she could get her hands on as a junior and her natural kicking style adapted well to Aussie rules.
A glistening junior career for the Southport Sharks and Labrador Tigers placed the 20-year-old in the upper echelon of Gold Coast talents meaning it was no surprise when she was drafted to the Brisbane Lions with pick 31 in the 2018 AFLW draft.
But Howarth would only spend one year with the Lions, failing to crack into a competitive 22, before she was delisted and struggled to comprehend what a future in footy held for her.
“I didn’t think my dream was over but I kind of fell out of love with footy,” she said.
“I took some time off to address some mental health issues and set myself up in life rather than just focusing on footy.
“I took that experience for granted.”
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Even if she managed to secure a second season at the Lions, Howarth said it was always her plan to return to the Suns after helping the club with their bid for an AFLW license.
And after a break out QAFLW season with Bond University last year where she kicked 31 goals and won the Bullshark’s best and fairest award, Howarth joined the Suns as a priority signing in August.
“From day dot, it’s always been my dream to be here at the Suns,” she said.
“I owe everything that I’ve done to the Suns.
“Ever since I’ve left school, they’ve helped me in every aspect of my life so I shared (to AFL powerbrokers) how important they are to me and what they do for the Gold Coast community.”
Eight years have now passed since Howarth disobeyed her dad and an AFLW debut is all that remains between her and the ultimate validation of her decision.
“It would mean the world to me,” she said.
“I’d be straight on the phone to my dad and I think we’d probably just sit on the phone together and cry because it’s been such a long time coming.”
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