Transgender athlete Hannah Mouncey hopes her Australian football saga is nearing its end after the AFL's vague details prompted her to make a surprise visit to the league's headquarters on Friday.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Mouncey arrived at AFL House in Melbourne seeking answers about her playing future after getting limited information via email or on the phone four months after she was banned from the AFLW draft.
It's understood the AFL is yet to finalise a process to decide if Mouncey will be eligible to play in the AFLW, which started its second season on Friday night, or in competitions around in Australia in the coming years.
The slow and frustrating drama has been damaging for Mouncey, who says she has been called a freak, been told "the best thing I deserve is cancer" or she should be "taken to the vet to be put down".
The sickening attacks haven't deterred Mouncey from pursuing her Australian football goals, despite the lack of clarity from the AFL.
Mouncey says Canberra's anti gender identity discrimination laws will mean she will be free to play for Ainslie in the capital this year.
But she could move to Melbourne for work and wants to know if she will be allowed to play in Victoria.
The AFL declined to comment, while AFL Canberra is still waiting for direction from the game's governing body.
Any decision could be delayed until the Australian Sports Commission finalises its transgender athlete policy, which will be used by all sports across the country.
An AFL official met Mouncey when she arrived at the league's offices, but she walked away from the building unsure if she would be eligible to continue her Australian football ambitions.
Asked why she decided to visit AFL House, Mouncey said: "They're not very good at returning phone calls or emails, that's quite literally it.
"I've tried calling, honestly ... I had a couple of hours to kill and I was in town.
"For all the questions I needed answers to or should have answers to, they weren't given. It might be because they don't know, but at the same time, don't pretend you do know what you're doing."
Mouncey has asked the AFL if she would be allowed to front the committee making a decision on her eligibility, but she said her approach was declined.
The 28-year-old's AFL visit came just hours before the women's season started in front a blockbuster crowd for a match between Collingwood and Carlton.
The AFL said it ruled Mouncey ineligible to play in the AFLW because she would become too big and too strong in a semi-professional environment.
But while she is banned from the AFL women's competition, Mouncey can play international women's handball and will join the Australian team for a training camp in Sydney on Saturday.
"I'm pretty exhausted after today. What I got out of it is that I definitely won't be stopped playing in Canberra if I'm in Canberra, so that's a positive," Mouncey said.
"That's largely because of the laws there, it's illegal to exclude due to gender identity. There was clearly a lot of confusion about the discussions we had at draft time.
"There's a lot of not understanding what actually happens when you go on hormone treatment, largely that you do lose the strength you've had.
"...People don't really understand that I'm not that strong anymore, despite what I look like.
"...I still don't know what the process for me is in a week time, I don't think the AFL know. But at least someone came down to talk to me. Hopefully that's good signs, but communication [from the AFL] could be a lot better."
