How Sydney managed to recruit superstar Chloe Molloy
From their inception, the Swans knew they wanted Chloe Molloy on their list. Here’s how they went from a flat no to her kicking seven goals in a game.
When the Swans were establishing themselves for their debut season in 2022, Chloe Molloy was the first name on their hit list. And while the partnership looks like a match made in heaven in 2025, for a long time, it looked like it would never get over the line.
After initially saying no to a move to Sydney, she’s now she’s the talk of the AFLW following her record seven-goal haul in their massive win over Gold Coast.
“I’ve always said that I think she’s the best female footballer I’ve seen,” Swans coach Scott Gowans said. “It’s not that she gets 30 (disposals) or so, it’s what she does and the position – she hurts the opposition and that’s rare in a player.
“I straight away knew that in building the team long-term, I wanted Chloe in the team. It was identified before even our first training sessions. I leaned on relationships that I had with her, coming from Collingwood myself, and I had her at Diamond Creek.
“It was simply a question, and she was so dedicated to Collingwood. She’s very loyal. It was never in the bag, and in fact, it was a no. It wasn’t until a follow-up conversation about nine months later that she said, ‘Let’s catch up for coffee, tell me about your club’.
“And she said, ‘If it’s not me, maybe I can help you’. I was more selling for her to go and sell to others for me. But from there, it went to her telling me that she was interested, she would speak to Collingwood, and it went from there.”
Even once Molloy indicated she had some interest in joining the Swans, Gowans wasn’t confident it was going to get over the line.
The speed with which the club formed meant they had become used to disappointment with recruitment. But Molloy’s signature was the straw that broke the camel’s back.
“I’m gonna call it two months (of waiting),” Gowans said. “It was quite a while, and I honestly thought we were maybe a 20 or 30 per cent chance.
“Then the phone call came through, and it was like, ‘Oh, thank God!’. Because we’d missed out, because of time frames and that second year, on making counter offers and things with some big-name players.
“Chloe was the key to, I suppose, set the ball rolling, because then, once she said yes, other players were more likely to actually seriously consider it.”
It was clear from her first few weeks at the Swans that Molloy was going to have a big impact. She was named a co-captain for her first season, alongside Lucy McEvoy, with the two youngsters inspiring the team to a remarkable top-eight finish.
For Brooke Lochland, who was Sydney’s first marquee signing, she hasn’t seen a player have as big an influence as when Molloy arrived at the Swans.
“We were clearly a very young group … so we knew it was going to get better, and clearly it helped bring some players in, not just Chloe, but Lucy coming in and Laura Gardner coming in,” Lochland said.
“But Chloe’s leadership was really important coming in a second season. She played a lot of footy and has been around for a while. She’s really helpful for our young players.
“Clearly, she’s a talented player and does a lot herself, but for me, it’s the way she’s able to bring her teammates into the game as well.”
When Molloy kicked seven goals against the Suns, it was in fact Lochland’s record that she equalled, after the now Swans forward line coach kicked seven for the Western Bulldogs in 2018.
But there is zero animosity towards Molloy. In fact, Lochland was the most disappointed person in the stadium because she didn’t kick eight.
“I was stoked for her,” Lochland said. “I’ve been saying for many years that I’d hope it would be broken soon.
“It was bittersweet. I was hoping that she’d actually steal it and kick eight. I hope that she takes the record this season, but yeah, it’s off the back of a lot of hard work from her.”
What makes Molloy’s start to the season even more remarkable – where she has kicked 11 goals in two games – is that it’s off the back of a devastating ACL injury.
She missed all but one game in 2024 and spent months on the sidelines. While for some athletes, it might have been too hard to deal with. But Molloy embraced the challenge, and as a result, Gowans believes she is still nowhere near her ceiling.
“I think she’s realised that if she can get herself really fit, which she has done through her rehab, PB’s in lifting, PB’s in running, the sky’s the limit now,” Gowans said.
“She can really put another good body of work in and build herself up to have a good three or four-year period. And it’s not just me saying it, but I think she’ll establish herself as one of the all-time greats.”
Originally published as How Sydney managed to recruit superstar Chloe Molloy
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