Adelaide star Erin Phillips wins first AFLW Best-and-Fairest award
ERIN Phillips has delivered an emotional acceptance speech after winning the first ever AFL Women’s best-and-fairest player. PLUS CORAL CARPET PICS
AFLW
Don't miss out on the headlines from AFLW. Followed categories will be added to My News.
ERIN Phillips is the first ever AFL Women’s best-and-fairest player.
The Adelaide star polled a total of 14 votes across the seven-round home-and-away season to win the inaugural award from Melbourne’s Karen Paxman and Bulldogs star Ellie Blackburn on 10 votes.
ALL-STARS: SEE THE AFLW ALL-AUSTRALIAN TEAM
“When I was 13 years old … I was told I wasn’t allowed to play any more with the boys,” Phillips said.
SCROLL DOWN FOR PICS FROM THE CORAL CARPET
“To have this 17 years later — only a few years — I’m so, so fortunate. I’m so grateful it was brought forward and to be a part of it is so special.
“I think it would have passed my time (if it hadn’t been played this year). I’ve loved every single bit of it. I just love the game. As soon as I was born, I wanted to play footy.”
Congrats @erinphillips131 on winning everything ever.. ever! Seriously though what an incredible season. A true champ. #AFLWAwards
— Patrick Dangerfield (@dangerfield35) March 28, 2017
In 3 days @erinphillips131 has collected the @aflwomens version of Brownlow, Norm Smith & Leigh Matthews awards. HOF awaits.#AFLWawards
— Joshua Kay (@js_kay) March 28, 2017
Phillips admitted she was guilty of pestering her Collingwood and Port Adelaide-playing father Greg when he got home from training to kick the footy when she was young.
It’s paid off.
Outgoing AFL chairman Mike Fitzpatrick toasted the Crows co-captain, and said “she has every quality of our game’s greatest champions”.
It almost never happened.
The 31-year-old – who returns to the US in 22 days to start her preseason with WNBA outfit Dallas Wings - tore her quad when kicking in the Crows’ second-ever training session and she only re-joined her eventually-victorious teammates in full training in the week of the inaugural competition’s opening round.
“The whole transition from trying to become a professional footballer – it’s such a different energy system,” she said.
“AFL is the hardest sport to play and you really get a full understanding and appreciation of just how hard the competition is and the physical demands on and off the field. It wasn’t a smooth transition.”
Now she has a few decisions to make.
The Commonwealth Games looms next year and the prospect of having another crack at Olympic gold in Tokyo in 2020, with the star set to sit down with Basketball Australia in coming weeks to map out a plan.
“Obviously we have a great relationship, still,” she said.
“We’ll see. I was really happy to not look at anything past this season. I just really wanted to enjoy it, because it wasn’t an opportunity I thought I was going to have.”
The long-time Opals player won a silver medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and has also claimed two world championship medals and two WNBA championships.
AFLW BEST AND FAIREST
14 Erin Phillips (Adel)
10 Karen Paxman (Melb)
10 Ellie Blackburn (WB)
9 Lara Filocamo (Freo)
8 Kaitlyn Ashmore (Bris)
7 Darcy Vescio (Carl)
7 Jess Dal Pos (GWS)
7 Elise O’Dea (Melb)
7 Daisy Pearce (Melb)
7 Emma Kearney (WB)
Stark reality as AFLW battles to grow Indigenous numbers
Just one Indigenous player will be on the field for Saturday’s Dreamtime game and only 20 Indigenous players are in the AFLW. But there is hope growth is around the corner.
Hawks love star despite absurd pre-game ritual
An eccentric Hawthorn star has raised eyebrows with her pre-game routine, but looms as the Hawks’ ace in the pack at the pointy end of the season.