Sophie McKay set to follow in sister Abbie, dad Andrew’s footsteps as Carlton father-daughter pick in AFLW Draft
Sophie McKay had a front-row seat to her sister’s ascension into Carlton folklore as the AFLW’s first-ever father-daughter pick. Now, she’s preparing to make her own history in navy blue.
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Sophie McKay has had a front-row seat to her sister’s ascension to Carlton folklore as the AFLW’s first-ever father-daughter pick.
“It’s cool seeing the shift that Andrew McKay is now Abbie’s dad instead of Abbie being Andrew’s daughter,” Sophie said.
“Abbie is the big name now.”
So as the 18-year-old prepares to follow in 244 gamer Andrew’s footsteps and join her sister at the club in this year’s draft, will there ever come a time when Abbie is considered Sophie’s sister?
“I think that’ll be a while away,” she said.
“She’s killing it.
“Hopefully I’ll get there eventually, much to her disgust. Running out with her would be an absolute dream.”
Carlton has officially lodged a father-daughter draft nomination for McKay, giving the Blues priority access to the powerful midfielder. Regardless of her father-daughter status, McKay is considered one of the top 10 prospects in this year’s draft pool.
Wherever a bid falls for the Sandringham Dragons star, it won’t matter. McKay was always destined to be a Blue.
“I’ve been a Carlton supporter my whole life,” she said.
“I wasn’t alive when dad played but he obviously worked there for a while and I was in awe of football.
“I wanted to be around it 24/7. I spent so much of my childhood there forcing players to kick the ball back and forth to me even when they were trying to get away.”
While it’s safe to say that her draft year hasn’t gone to plan, McKay jokes that she’s getting all of her bad luck out of the way now before she enters the AFLW system.
McKay missed six weeks of pre-season due to a series of unfortunate events. First, she injured her hamstring. Then she contracted COVID-19.
Then she sliced her finger open making a ham sandwich.
“By the time I sliced my finger I was like ‘This is a joke,’” she said. “At least it all happened before the season.
“It did disrupt my fitness but I compensated by working with the Sandy team to do extra training to get back to where I wanted to be.”
McKay returned in time to represent the AFLW National Academy in her first match of the year but she unknowingly suffered a shoulder injury that plagued her for the rest of the season.
In her final game of the year, an elimination final against Oakleigh that the Dragons eventually lost by 53 points, McKay dislocated the same shoulder. She played on, wanting to see out her final game but it subluxed again in the fourth quarter.
“That’s when I realised ‘Oh, this hurts’ So we got it scanned and I’ve torn my labrum,” she said.
Carlton father-daughter prospect Sophie McKay was electric for the AFLW Academy over the weekend âï¸
— AFL Women's (@aflwomens) April 9, 2024
Read more: https://t.co/r8OjqD3fVEpic.twitter.com/KG61DpQ6f7
McKay underwent surgery a week before the national draft combine and was unable to test. It wasn’t as much of an issue as it could’ve been given she had more media interviews than club, her father-daughter status meaning that opposition recruiters didn’t see the need to speak with her.
McKay is now nearly two months into her rehab and has four months to go. She’s expected to be back to full fitness for the start of AFLW pre-season in May.
“I think it’s exciting to think that I was at a disadvantage all year battling an injured shoulder I had no idea about,” she said. “But the adrenaline out on the field, you don’t feel it.”
The other challenge McKay has faced this year is a bid to add more strings to her bow.
Sophie McKay vs Allies:
— Carlton Blues Fans (@CarltonFCBlues) July 2, 2024
26 touches
11 contested
equal game high 6 clearances
equal game high 7 inside 50s
game high 428 metres gained
8 score involvements
3 marks
3 tackles
1 intercept pic.twitter.com/BN9JZNDvnQ
Sophie McKay vs South Australia:
— Carlton Blues Fans (@CarltonFCBlues) August 12, 2024
20 touches, 8 contested
1 goal
4 inside 50s
4 intercepts
3 score involvements
3 clearances
2 tackles pic.twitter.com/7Nj58a6uT2
Best known as a pacey inside midfielder, McKay loves nothing better than taking the game on and breaking away from congestion. But at 167cm, she’s been forced to spend more time up forward this year in preparation for her introduction to the AFLW.
“It was actually a pretty big challenge for me,” she said. “I was sort of just thrown in there.
“I haven’t had much training up there and I felt like I was a bit lost at times. I think I got caught ball-watching a bit because I’m so used to being at the contest.
“The goal is to eventually play midfield. I watch the game and wish that was me. I think I thrive in high-level games because I love the speed of the ball.
“I know that I’m not going to go straight into an AFLW club and play on-ball. It was good to build that versatility and play to my strengths.”
Originally published as Sophie McKay set to follow in sister Abbie, dad Andrew’s footsteps as Carlton father-daughter pick in AFLW Draft
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