AFLW: Giants forward Bec Privitelli wins 2020 Mark of the Year award
Giants forward Bec Privitelli’s perseverance and hard work has been rewarded with the AFLW 2020 Mark of the Year
As a statement of intent, Bec Privitelli’s mark in the opening match of the AFLW season in February demonstrated her determination to make the most of her second chance in football.
The pack mark against the Gold Coast, taken in torrential rain was as strong as it was skilful and courageous. At the time, the Giant was too caught up in her return game to think much about the mark, one of six she managed in her side’s victory over the Suns.
But as her parents Rob and Linda were heading back to Melbourne having driven up to Blacktown to watch Privitelli’s first game back, her dad told her he couldn’t stop replaying it in his mind.
A month after the 2020 season ended in despairing fashion due to the coronavirus, Privitelli received a pleasant surprise, with the league ordaining her grab the AFLW Mark of the Year.
“It is a bit of a shock, actually. I was actually shocked to get a nomination at the time as well,” Privitelli told The Australian.
Privitelli feels she took an even better mark against West Coast a fortnight later, a match where she kicked three goals, but it was not paid. And she would have voted for the one-handed mark that Adelaide’s Courtney Gum took while running backwards.
But that does not detract from the thrill of the honour, and her satisfaction at making a successful return to the top level following a period away from the game.
Hailing from Yarrambat on the outer north-eastern fringe of Melbourne, Privitelli played with Carlton in the AFLW’s inaugural year in 2017 before joining the Giants for the 2018 season. The 25-year-old admits she struggled with the demands of playing in the professional competition. After speaking with coach Alan McConnell, she was delisted by the club she worked for at the end of 2018.
“Alan said to me that if I kept doing the same things, nothing was going to change,” she said.
“I was not mentally in the right place. When you are a kid, you play because you love it. And don’t get me wrong, I still love it. But when you get to a higher level, you put a lot more pressure on yourself and there is more pressure from other people.”
Privitelli travelled for a little while but her love of football did not diminish. She played a couple of matches for the University of NSW through the winter competition last year and trained hard for a sustained period.
“I didn’t know if I was going to play again. I thought, ‘this is it for me to play again’,” she said.
“It is really hard to get a second chance, especially at this level.”
A sea change has made a difference and life is good.
Privitelli and her partner Jasmine, a firefighter in Sydney’s CBD, have moved from the city’s inner west to Cronulla.
She is particularly busy working for TheMusic, which has been arranging online festivals for musicians across the country while providing support for local artists and venues.
And her football was fantastic throughout the 2020 campaign, with the forward leading the AFLW for the most contested marks.
Privitelli was not the only award winner on Sunday.
Melbourne’s Kate Hore was honoured with the 2020 Goal of the Year for her superb effort against Carlton to convert on the run after taking three bounces.
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