Leah Kaslar told the Suns she wasn’t interested in joining the club before quickly changing her mind
The odds were always in the favour of Leah Kaslar returning to the Gold Coast to continue her AFLW career but when the club came calling in early 2019, her immediate reaction was to say no.
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THE odds were always in the favour of Leah Kaslar returning to the Gold Coast to continue her AFLW career but when the club came calling in early 2019, her immediate reaction was to say no.
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Coming off her first season captaining the Lions in 2019, Kaslar had been a crucial member of the Brisbane side which won their way into two grand finals in three seasons.
But despite being a Gold Coast girl at heart, and commuting 90 minutes by car three or four times a week to Brisbane, Kaslar initially had no intention of switching clubs.
“Fiona McLarty (Suns Head of Women’s Football) rang me when I was on the way to Brisbane to see the physio,” the 34-year-old said.
“I’m really loyal and valued what I had at the Lions so when she rang, I said look I’m really flattered but I’m not interested and hung up the phone and sat in traffic thinking about it.
“I always said I was going to play for the Suns because I’ve supported this club since it began and I live on the Gold Coast so I’m pretty passionate about the club.
“This is where I’m from and this is where I belong so it was a chance to be part of something new.
“I think I made the right decision to come home and it took me a few weeks but I know I’ve made the right choice.”
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Grappling with her AFLW future was a far cry from Kaslar’s childhood which she spent playing basketball in Cairns before Aussie rules came knocking.
“I played a lot of basketball but then I was asked to go and play football and I immediately loved the physicality of it and how many people were on the field at once,” she said.
“I’d actually never properly sat down and watched the game.
“I obviously wouldn’t have been great when I started and I learned a lot of lessons along the way but that’s the beauty of the sport; you can be tall, small, strong, quick, there’s all different attributes you can bring to the game.”
When AFL CEO Gillon McLachlan announced that they were moving the AFLW league launch forward from 2020 to 2017, Kaslar quickly decided to knuckle down and chase her national league dream.
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Recruited with pick 31 in the 2016 AFLW draft, the Coolangatta Bluebirds product was part of a Lions side that quickly exceeded outside expectations to make the 2017 AFLW grand final.
“Our first game we played in Melbourne against Melbourne and it was pouring rain,” Kaslar said.
“All my family were there and everyone really underrated us in Queensland and there was a lot of talk about us and how well we’d go.
“We had something to prove.
“I remember the rain pouring down and the whole squad jumping up and down after we won.”
Feeling refreshed after a year spent on the sidelines, Kaslar said she is excited to take on a new attacking role in the forward half after years spent terrorising opposition forwards.
“I don’t have four fractured fingers anymore so that’s a good start,” the Suns’ captain said.
“I think I had six injuries in six weeks but I’m feeling fit and ready to go and haven’t missed a session.”
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