As a founding member of GSV, Melbourne Girls Grammar embraced the inception of AFL from the beginning and have consistently fielded teams in an increasingly competitive fixture. After the 2023 GSV Premiership, Executive Director of Artemis Programs, Sally Bailey, said “... it’s been exciting to see the accelerated development of AFL across all GSV schools. This development is fundamental to the progression of the competition, the game and opportunities for female players.” 

At the 2024 Celebration of Sport, Head of Sport and Coaching, Anthony Bruhn (AB), reflected on the 2024 football season. “Every season our footballers have three goals in mind. They are to have fun, win the GSV AFL Premiership and win the Herald Sun Shield. This season, our Senior team won all 10 games.”  

This year our GSV Premiership-winning Senior Football team qualified to play in AFL Victoria's Herald Sun Shield for the third consecutive year. Winning both competitions convincingly, the team has gone undefeated this year, with a winning percentage of 3,700. “This is no joke,” shared AB, “... throughout the season, we scored 592 points and had 16 points scored against us.”

What makes this team special isn’t any shining stars or fancy equipment or expert coaching. The success of this group of players is down to the depth and strength of the list, and the bonds and connections formed throughout the season. Led brilliantly by captains Tess Faulks and Lily Wallace (both Year 12), the team demonstrated what can be achieved through teamwork, trust and genuine care for one another. With enormous respect for their leaders and coaching group – including AB, Colin Drake (past parent and long-time Athletics coach) and Tennille Nash – our players work hard each season to develop their skills, action feedback and strengthen their bond. Their ‘team-first’ defence was built the ‘Melbourne way’ anchored by Grace and Sam with unwavering support from both Siennas, Jemima, Emma, Mikayla, Lucy and Rose. With Hanna and Emily patrolling the wings, and a first-class midfield in Lily, Sophie, Harriet, Macy, Tess and Imogen, our forward line received long and direct kicks to the ‘dancefloor’. It’s little wonder that Edie, Chloe, Claudi, Ava, Fleur, Kath, Matilda and Grace all hit the scoreboard in waves.

The relationships that form between Grammarians in Years 9, 10, 11 and 12 are really special. It is particularly heartwarming to watch Year 9 students grow and become more comfortable with their older peers and eventually develop strong bonds with them. Year 10 player Hanna admitted “as a younger player in the mix, it’s easy to feel intimidated by the skill and experience of the older girls, but as soon as you get on the field, they lead in a way that elevates everyone, giving new girls the chance to grow and shine.” Year 9 student Claudia – who won Best on Ground for the GSV AFL Semi Final against Genazzano – said, “Within the team, we’re all friends. Colin would say ‘grab a partner’ and it really wouldn’t matter who you were with. We all shared a great bond and that contributed really positively to our season’s outcome.”

Having energetic and committed older peers to look up to was a highlight for Claudia during her first year in the team. “All the Senior girls are super talented, with how they manage all their commitments and still bring positivity to training each week.” For Hanna, Colin’s passing drills before training (competing for chocolate) were a standout. “Although we were competing against each other, we were laughing and having fun with it.” Hanna said she’s learned to back herself by watching others like Chloe Williams putting themselves out there in the tough moments. Macy in Year 11 has learned a lot from Seniors she’s played with over the years, “... just seeing how they have so much fun with their footy and don’t take themselves too seriously”.

In 2023, Anthony reflected on the dedicated coaching of Colin and Tennille, and the structured coaching model that is implemented across all Artemis Programs through the MGGS Coach Education Framework. “We’ve had a very intentional focus over the past few years on developing well-rounded athletes across a range of sports. Strong, robust, and versatile athletes who know how to train, and are physically and mentally prepared to meet the demands of the sport. Our coaches take a holistic and long-term approach in working with our students, and Tennille and Colin are the perfect examples of this.”

The culture fostered by Colin and Tennille has continued to reap rewards this year, with Claudia citing the team’s culture as its major strength: “I would definitely say the culture is the foundation of the team’s success. Everyone is always getting around each other, celebrating wins and losses and just having fun. I think it’s so important that everyone is a part of the team, and that we can back ourselves and each other!”

Not only have they created this supportive and safe environment, but they have also been clear in their instructions and encouraged everyone to get involved and give things a go, giving “... everyone the opportunity to develop and grow.” Hanna felt “like the coaches really [made] time for everyone individually, whether that [was] for advice or skill development. It made a huge difference to [her] game knowing [she had] people in [her] corner wanting to see [her] grow.” Macy said that the clarity around responsibilities in the team was important, “...everyone knows they play a key role...everyone is versatile and open to doing what the team needs...and we all know that we have each other’s backs.”

During their undefeated GSV season, there was a chance the team could develop complacency due to the outdated process for how fixtures are created, which resulted in a lack of challenge until the finals. They could have become bored, unfocused, arrogant even in their approach to games, but each week they jumped on the bus raring to “...just get out there and have fun.” Like last year, they grabbed their opportunities with both hands and ran with them. Their GSV Finals campaign involved a Semi Final 62 to 0 win against Genazzano and a 51 to 9 win over MLC.  

The School’s support of this team has been evident in the crowds of staff and students at GSV Finals matches in Term 2 and at the Herald Sun Shield Grand Final in August. Our players knew that when the Merton Army arrived, the whole School was behind them. With signs, drums and even Jess MacLennan’s saxophone making an appearance at this year’s GSV Grand Final, the roar of the Merton Army was as strong as it has ever been in 2024, feeding energy into the playing group at every contest.

“We’ve had a very intentional focus over the past few years on developing well-rounded athletes across a range of sports. Strong, robust, and versatile athletes..." – Anthony Bruhn

The AFL Victoria Herald Sun Shield is a finals-like competition which brings together the winners of different regions' schoolgirls’ football competitions to play off for the top spot in the state. The success of last year's campaign, with two stunning wins over SEDA College and Caulfield Grammar was such an exciting time for MGGS, and 2024 was no different. In early August, the team approached the Herald Sun Shield once more, facing Sacred Heart College, Geelong in the Semi Final at Williamstown Football Club. The full-time score was MGGS 9.8 (62) to SHC 1.0(6). Prior to the Grand Final match a week later, against Caulfield Grammar once more, AB reminded the girls that the game would “... be won, in and under the contest. Be the first person there and don't leave until you have helped win the ball forward. Dig in and don't be shy, show them again what it feels like to play in the ‘long grass’!” Defeating Caulfield Grammar, again, in the Herald Sun Shield Grand Final game (43 to 14) just showed the class of this team and the strength of our program as the best schoolgirls AFL program in the country.  

Tennille reflected on the match at the Sport Assembly in September:  

“The team registered their first score through Edie McLachlan and didn’t look back as they hit the scoreboard every quarter. We asked the players to be first to the ball, compete in the contest, step in to tackle and most importantly have fun.

The final score was 6.7 (43) to 2.2 (14) with MGGS leading at every break and keeping Caulfield scoreless in the last quarter. We play a hard, fast and committed style of football that is supported by talented and skilled players, but it is driven by passion, enjoyment and connection. The Best on Ground award was given to Chloe Williams for her attacking play all over the field and her ability to take huge, contested marks under pressure – she is a superstar!

Goal kickers were Chloe Williams (2), Harriet Kogler (1), Claudia Kogler (1), Macy Watkins (1) and Edie McLachlan (1). The six best players named were Imogen Perrett (Year 10), Harriet Kogler (Year 12), Edie McLachlan (Year 11), Macy Watkins (Year 11), Chloe Williams (Year 11), and Sienna Sharp (Year 11).

We thank all players and their families for believing in our vision and investing in the program. We have the recipe to go back-to-back-to-back and we look forward to this journey in 2025."

At the conclusion of the 2023 season, Sally Bailey also spoke of the distinctive versatility of our Grammarians and how their ongoing commitment to their own wellbeing has led them to these wonderful achievements.

“Our [AFL] players are all multi-sport athletes… rowers, swimmers, runners, basketballers, and netballers. Most play for a local footy club. Some have been selected in academy and state teams. They just love the game and, more than anything, they love playing with each other and representing their School. You can see it in the way they train and play, each player brings a different level of skill and experience, but there is a cohesiveness in the way they work together, there’s an enormous amount of respect and, most importantly, they have fun.”

Since the end of the global pandemic, our GSV AFL program has attracted approximately 80 Grammarians from Years 7 to 12 each season. The GSV AFL competition is set up so that students in Years 7 and 8 compete together as Juniors and students from Years 9 to 12, as Seniors. This allows for a development-focused pathway of skill progression to occur. It has been wonderful for coaches and staff to watch as Junior players progress to Seniors, learn from their older peers and then become role models themselves. The journeys of Year 12 players like Tess Faulks, Sophie McKay and Lily Wallace stand out as examples of the way our AFL program has nurtured talent and connection within our community, but also enabled our Grammarians to shine and chase their dreams.  

Seven Old Grammarians have gone on to play football at AFLW level;

• Phoebe McWilliams (GWS Giants, Geelong Cats, Carlton Blues)
• Bonnie Toogood (Western Bulldogs, Essendon Bombers)
• Abbie McKay (Carlton Blues)
• Olivia Vesely (St Kilda Saints)
• Eliza McNamara (Melbourne Demons)
• Jackie Parry (Melbourne Demons, Geelong Cats)
• J’Noemi Anderson (St Kilda Saints)

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Phoebe, Bonnie, Olivia, and Eliza have all played inspiring and valuable coaching roles in our program, Sally said, “they can all claim a piece of this Shield win.” We hope you enjoy reading more about the McKay family legacy later on in this edition of IE.  

As we reflect on the wonderful achievements of the Senior Football team, we recognise the brilliant culture and legacy they carry forward, as they inspire more Grammarians to get involved in sport each year.  

While Colin’s famous words may have sounded a little farfetched when they first heard them, his special pre-game pep talk is now a potent reminder of this team’s achievements:  

"We are now the best team in the state. And Victoria is what?" He asks.
"The best state at footy in the country!" The girls reply.
"And Australia is what?"
"The best country in the world at footy!"
"So we are the best team in the world!"

If you would like to read more about the team’s 2023 campaign, click here.

Thank you to everyone who contributed to this article: Anthony Bruhn, Tennille Nash, Colin Drake, Sally Bailey, Claudia Kogler, Macy Watkins and Hanna Kahsnitz.