When Cambridge McCormick was 12 years old she was told she couldn't play footy with the boys anymore, and with no girls competition available back then, her AFLW journey could have ended there.
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Thankfully the efforts of her dad and a group of parents in Queensland got a girls competition up and running, and McCormick hasn't looked back since.
McCormick's footy pursuits landed her in Canberra, playing first-grade for the Eastlake Demons, and now the 23-year-old is set to make her AFLW debut on Sunday for the GWS Giants.
"It's a dream come true and it's pretty incredible to look back on how far football has come," McCormick told The Canberra Times.
"I've been really lucky to be in that age group where we've just gotten our foot in the door to have had the opportunity to play at this level."
McCormick was a late AFLW draft pick but in a short time in pre-season she has made an impact, earning herself selection in the ruck for the Giants' season-opener against the Western Bulldogs at Princes Park.
"It's pretty incredible. Only a few short months ago I was with Eastlake playing in Canberra with a dream I didn't really know would come true or not," she said.
"It's been great during pre-season with one of our other rookie rucks Fleur Davies, working really hard together. But it was still a pretty big shock to be able to make my debut."
Giants coach Cam Bernasconi also hails from the capital, and McCormick said she has never had a mentor that has brought so much positivity to a playing group.
That was evident in the way he announced McCormick's debut with fellow draftees Madison Brazendale, with a "funny skit" used to announce it in a team meeting on Friday.
GWS will need that change of attitude after a disappointing finish last season, where they struggled to get points on the board. The game-plan has shifted under Bernasconi to address that and McCormick is one of the key players GWS will rely on to implement the new approach.
"She's essentially just a little rover once the ball hits the ground," Bernasconi said.
"We want to play a bit more of an attacking brand of footy that essentially goes a bit faster. It'll be really exciting to see what they can bring on the ground, because that's going to complement the way that we're going to play."
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Melanie Dinjaski
Melanie Dinjaski is an experienced sports journalist at the Canberra Times with a genuine love of all sports. She's covered every code from NRL to NFL. Melanie aims to bring Canberrans all the sports news they need to know. If you have a story worth sharing, get in touch!
Melanie Dinjaski is an experienced sports journalist at the Canberra Times with a genuine love of all sports. She's covered every code from NRL to NFL. Melanie aims to bring Canberrans all the sports news they need to know. If you have a story worth sharing, get in touch!
