The GIANTS have committed to 25 AFLW stars for the upcoming season and beyond, with the club to take a settled list into the 2021 season.
25 players from the squad who took the GIANTS to their first finals series in 2020 will feature next season, including captain 2020 Alicia Eva, Club Champion Alyce Parker and runner-up Elle Bennetts.
Seven GIANTS have put pen to paper on two-year deals with the club including Eva, Parker, former Gabrielle Trainor Medallist Rebecca Beeson, star defender Pepa Randall, utility Louise Stephenson, Mark of the Year winner Rebecca Privitelli and young gun Tait Mackrill.
As the club announced last week, young defender/inside-mid Katherine Smith has also joined the club on a two-year deal from the Melbourne Demons.
Irishwomen Cora Staunton and Yvonne Bonner will return for 2021 alongside former Club Champion Jessica Dal Pos.
Also signed for 2021 are local products Haneen Zreika, Erin McKinnon, Nicola Barr, Lisa Steane, Britt Tully, Jodie Hicks, Emily Goodsir, Taylah Davies, Georgia Garnett and Sarah Halvorsen.
They’re also joined by Bennetts, Tanya Hetherington, Annalyse Lister, Jessica Allan and Aimee Schmidt.
GIANTS Head of Academies and AFLW Briana Harvey said the club was thrilled to head into 2021 with a strong group of core players.
“We’re thrilled to have 25 of our top players commit to the club for next season and beyond,” she said.
“We know we’ve built a strong culture and first-class AFLW program here at the GIANTS and the commitment from the majority of our list show that.
“Along with strong local talent, we have players who are willing to relocate themselves and their families to be part of our program which speaks volumes of what we have built here.
“We’re continuing to talk to some other players who were part of our program in 2020 and expect to finalise our list in the coming weeks.”
The GIANTS will farewell dual-code star Ellie Brush, ruck Ingrid Nielsen and young Canberran Maggie Gorham while Lisa Whiteley joined the Crows in a trade last week.
Brush has decided to step away from AFLW to focus on the opportunity to make the Matildas squad that will head to the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.
Nielsen has retired after two seasons juggling AFLW commitments will her full-time career as a paramedic, while Gorham has decided not to pursue an AFLW career at this point in her life.
Harvey wished the trio well and thanked them for their commitment to the club.
“I’d like to pay tribute to Ellie, who was a breakout star of our first few seasons in the AFLW,” she said.
“She’s achieved an enormous amount in her elite sporting career across two codes and we wish her only the best in her next sporting pursuit.
“We also thank Ingrid and Maggie for their time at the club. They’ve only been here a short time but had such a positive influence on our group and we wish them well in their next ventures.”
Pre-season will commence with a two-week induction period starting Wednesday November 4, 2020 while the 2021 NAB AFL Women's Competition is set for the week commencing February 1, 2021.
GIANTS’ Signings
Alicia Eva (signed until 2022)
Alyce Parker (2022)
Katherine Smith (2022) - Traded from Melbourne
Pepa Randall (2022)
Louise Stephenson (2022)
Rebecca Privitelli (2022)
Tait Mackrill (2022)
Rebecca Beeson (2022)
Haneen Zreika (2021)
Cora Staunton (2021)
Erin McKinnon (2021)
Jessica Dal Pos (2021)
Elle Bennetts (2021)
Nicola Barr (2021)
Yvonne Bonner (2021)
Annalyse Lister (2021)
Lisa Steane (2021)
Jodie Hicks (2021)
Britt Tully (2021)
Jessica Allan (2021)
Aimee Schmidt (2021)
Tanya Hetherington (2021)
Emily Goodsir (2021)
Taylah Davies (2021)
Georgia Garnett (2021)
Sarah Halvorsen (2021)
