Watch Bríd Stack's emotional debut reveal: 'I’ve been crying since Alan gave me the nod'
With Stack Her Being Of New Brid Gws Season Presented Jersey Giants Ahead The
Bríd Stack will make her AFLW debut this Sunday when she will line out for the GWS Giants when they face the Gold Coast Suns at the Great Barrier Reef Arena in Queensland.
Stack, who joined the Giants ahead of last season, got injured in a challenge match against the Adelaide Crows when colliding with Ebony Marinoff and fractured a bone in her neck. But 51 weeks later, GWS Head Coach Alan McConnell gave Stack the nod in a team meeting earlier this morning along with two other debutants Ally Morphett and Ally Dallaway.
Just before Christmas, Stack was getting ready to return to Adelaide to again face the Crows in a practice match, mentally preparing to re-start her AFLW career in a game that then had to be cancelled due to Covid.
“I’m probably just going to start crying like I’ve been crying since Alan gave me the nod,” Stack told GIANTS TV following the announcement.
“I’m just so excited, it’s probably a massive relief. There were obviously a lot of logistics to work out at home first before I could commit to this season but there’s definitely been a burning desire in me and I definitely want to give it a go.
"I want to repay this team for the love and support they showed my family last year and hopefully I can do that on the playing field.”
The Giants team will be confirmed on Saturday but it is expected that fellow Irishwomen Cora Staunton will line out for the Sydney-based side.
Not a dry eye in the room!
— GWS GIANTS (@GWSGIANTS) January 7, 2022
The moment our three debutants were told they'd be playing this weekend 🧡 pic.twitter.com/c56e4WvybV
Meanwhile, Aine Tighe will make her debut for Fremantle after two years with the Dockers. Tighe, who has had a litany of knee injuries while in Australia will finally line out at centre-forward when they face the West Coast Eagles in a local derby (9.50am Irish time).
"I am just excited and relieved to get to this stage, just really looking forward to the weekend to get to run out with the girls," she told Fremantle FC TV.
“I have learnt a lot in the last three years while in Australia about the game which hopefully will stand me in good stead. The support from everyone here has been phenomenal. A couple of curveballs thrown in along the way but looking forward to Round 1."
The Eagles will see all three Irish players in their squad with Aisling McCarthy and Niamh Kelly in from the start and Kelly's sister Grace on the bench.
Irish viewers can watch this clash with TG4 showing deferred covreage from 5.15 on Saturday evening.
Elsewhere, Rachel Kearns is another Irish player to make her AFLW debut this weekend as she will line out left half-forward for the Geelong Cats. Kearns, who has been a prominent soccer star with Galway WFC, will face North Melbourne at Arden Street on Saturday where fellow Mayo player Aileen Gilroy will line out for the Kangaroos.
Highlights of all the Irish in action will be shown on TG4's ‘AFL Aussie Rules na mBan’ on Monday night at 7.30pm.