Leah Kaslar played state league football in Perth before making her way onto an AFLW list, now she’s back to wreak havoc on her former teammates
The sleepy capital of Western Australia may be over five hours from the Gold Coast by plane, but Perth has never been far from Leah Kaslar’s mind.
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THE sleepy capital of Western Australia may be over five hours from the Gold Coast by plane, but Perth has never been far from Leah Kaslar’s mind.
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Long before she was named the inaugural captain of the Suns AFLW side alongside Sam Virgo, the 34-year-old was throwing her weight around for the East Fremantle Sharks after making the move from the Gold Coast to progress her football and professional career (and surf a few new waves).
Despite being forced to relearn how to kick, finding herself in the under-16s talent academy at the age of 23, Kaslar’s stocks quickly rose.
She was named best on ground as an undersized ruck in the Sharks victorious 2011 WAWFL Grand Final, winning player of the finals and player’s player the same year.
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Last weekend when the Suns faced off against the Eagles, Kaslar even had a brief reunion with fellow Sharks’ product and Eagles captain Emma Swanson as they bumped elbows and tossed the coin before the first siren.
And now she and her Suns are back to inflict more pain on the Fremantle Dockers.
“Hopefully I can terrorise a few more Western Australians this weekend,” Kaslar said of her return to the backline.
“I do know several girls on their team and I’ve played with and against a couple of their girls.
“They’re a really tough team and they’ll be very determined after their loss in finals last year.
“We’re just so lucky to have this opportunity.
“Last week we went over there and had a really good performance and our preparation has been good so we’ll take a bit of confidence out of that.”
CONFIRMED: SUNS TO PLAY FINALS FOOTY
Like many of her teammates, Kaslar rode the ‘rollercoaster’ of emotions on Wednesday night as the Suns waited to hear whether they had qualified for finals.
But having had the experience of an unconventional final series in the past in 2017 where the Lions were forced to play their home grand final at Metricon Stadium, Kaslar was happy to let fate walk its course.
“Focusing on that stuff is draining and challenging,” she said.
“The coaching staff went from Adelaide to Fremantle in almost seconds.
“It’s finals footy and it’s what you play for and you don’t get opportunities to play finals footy that often so you’ve got to enjoy it.
“I know our brand of footy works and we’ve got a team of players who stand up when they’re challenged so we’re excited for the fight.”
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