The GIANTS are delighted to have locked away Irish speed machine Eilish O’Dowd for the next two seasons.

Fresh off a brilliant debut season, the former Gaelic football star has signed a new one-year contract extension to remain a GIANT until at least the end of the 2026 AFLW season.

Originally signed as a rookie ahead of the 2024 season, O’Dowd burst onto the AFLW scene in thrilling fashion to remarkably finish equal fourth in the GIANTS’ club champion award, the Gabrielle Trainor Medal, in her first-ever season of Australian rules football.

Hailing from the small town of Ballinamore in Ireland’s County Leitrim - featuring a population of just over 900 people - O’Dowd joined the GIANTS just months after helping lead Dublin to the All-Ireland Gaelic Championship.   

Making her AFLW debut in the club’s record-breaking opening round win over the Western Bulldogs last year, O’Dowd created her own history on the day in a brilliant debut which saw her kick the fastest opening goal in AFLW history after kicking truly with her first-ever disposal just 15 seconds into the game.

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AFLW R1: Lightning O'Dowd lands fastest goal in AFLW history

Debutant Eilish O'Dowd motors away from the opening bounce to set a new record for the quickest major in AFLW

The remarkable passage of play set the tone for what was a spectacular debut season for O’Dowd who finished second across all rucks in the entire competition for disposals (15.3 per game), first for handballs per game amongst rucks (10.4), and fourth amongst all players for running bounces.

Standing at 180cm tall but one of the club’s best endurance athletes, O’Dowd’s running power and ability to take the game on with her dash and dare is a real weapon and one that excites the GIANTS about her future in orange and charcoal.

GIANTS Executive General Manager of AFLW and Football Operations, Alison Zell, said the club is thrilled to secure O’Dowd until at least the end of the 2026 AFLW season.

“We’re delighted for Eilish to remain a GIANT for at least two more years following what was an incredible debut season,” Zell said.

“To have her come across from Ireland and try her hand at a brand-new sport and to excel the way she did at the elite level is a remarkable achievement and we can’t wait to see what the future holds for her.

“Eilish’s signature comes following that of a number of our really promising young players and we’re excited about what we are building, and we can’t wait to get stuck into pre-season in a few months ready for a big 2025 season.”