The reluctant footballer who didn’t want to pull on the boots because she was the only girl, is now making her mark at the Crows
Hannah Martin was reluctant to pull on the footy boots, but it was her younger sister, Rachelle, who convinced her to and together they played at West Adelaide. Now, she’s in Crows colours
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Growing up on a sprawling cattle-turned-cropping farm on the Yorke Peninsula, there was almost nothing Hannah Martin couldn’t do.
She played netball, basketball, soccer and she ruled her Minlaton District School’s sports days with her explosive jump and speed. She’d always be out helping with the harvest and even got her truck licence so she could drive the header.
But there was one thing she didn’t do: football.
“No girls played footy,” she says.
“I remember I was at one of my brother’s trainings and I was nearby kicking the footy with dad and the coach said: ‘Do you want to play?’ and I said: ‘Am I the only girl?’. I was. And I just thought: ‘Nah, I don’t want to play’.
“I think I cared too much about what people thought. But also, it wasn’t a thing. Now I meet young girls who are playing for Payneham or whatever, it’s a norm now, which is good to see. But it wasn’t when I was growing up.”
It was her “more carefree” younger sister Rachelle who convinced Martin to put on the boots and the sisters played together last year at West Adelaide at both SAWFL and SANFLW level and, remarkably, in her first year of football, Martin won the SANFLW’s best and fairest last year.
Despite the 165cm, 22-year-old having played football at a club level for a little over a year, on Sunday she’ll run out on to Norwood Oval for her third game of AFLW, fast developing into a speedy midfielder for the Crows.
Martin was drafted by Adelaide at pick 51 in last year’s AFLW draft. It was the Crows’ final pick, but while other draftees are still waiting to play their first top-level game, Martin made her way immediately into the side.
But it hasn’t been easy. She’s put in lots of extra hours working on her kicking and spent pre-season learning to contain her nerves.
“Once I started to be able to back myself in, trainings got easier and what I’ve been working on is my kicking and (assistant coach) Andrew McLeod set aside a few days to do kicking practice with me and it’s improved so much and once I started feeling more confident in my kick, I could just forget about everything and just play footy.”
Crows coach Matthew Clarke said he was impressed with Martin, despite her having played such little competitive football.
“This is her first season and she’s played predominantly in some of the outside roles wings, half-forwards through the first couple of games and then she moved into the midfield last week and I thought she thrived in the position,” he said.
“She’s great around the contest, really clean at ground level and brings really good pressure, so we’re happy with how she’s progressed.
“It’s very early in her career but we like what we’re seeing.”
The junior primary PE/science teacher remains a farm girl at heart: “Even when I moved to Adelaide for uni, I was still coming home to help with the harvest, I’d drive the header, I’ve got my truck licence, I’m a full on farm girl.
“I was convinced that I was going to move back to the Yorke Peninsula and marry a farmer or whatever because I genuinely love the farm so much.
“I love there’s so much space. I always rode motorbikes. I was pretty much a tomboy growing up, that’s my older brother, Jerome’s influence I guess.”
But her farm plans are on hold while her teaching career blossoms and her football career develops. She’ll be marrying her fiancee, Karl, in October.
“He’s an absolute diehard Crows supporter, I think he was more excited when I got drafted than I was,” she says with a laugh.
A devoted non-denominational Christian, Martin says she looks up to the likes of NBA basketballer Steph Curry and fellow Crow Hugh Greenwood.
“I know God is using me in this space,” she says.
“I like the verse that says: ‘I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength’.
“My faith is very important to me — I know for sure that I wouldn’t have achieved what I have so far without the help of God.”
For now, she’s enjoying the tough competitiveness and pure camaraderie of AFLW footy and she hopes one day that her younger sister might also join her in Crows colours.
“Rachelle’s looking good and finally has a whole pre-season under her belt,” Martin says of her 152cm sibling who is back in West Adelaide colours.
“I rate her higher than me as a footballer. She’s the smallest person on the field, but will take down the biggest chicks. She is genuinely so aggressive and really skilful.”
AFLW Round 3
Adelaide v Geelong
Sunday, February 17
Norwood Oval, 2.05pm
Entry is free
Originally published as The reluctant footballer who didn’t want to pull on the boots because she was the only girl, is now making her mark at the Crows
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