Footy the top priority for Wilkins in 2023

It’s well known the footy field can provide opportunities unrivalled by other careers, but stories such as Madizen Wilkins are unimaginable even within the industry.

A proud representative of Subiaco Football Club, Wilkins, missed selection in the 2022 pre-season draft but was offered a position as a train-on for Fremantle Football Club for the AFLW Season 7.  Despite the disappointment of missing the draft, she was ultimately selected to make her AFLW debut in Round 8 against Collingwood, in the most extraordinary series of events.

Describing her AFLW debut as a “massive rollercoaster”, Wilkins told subiacofc.com.au the week of the game, the family had planned for a holiday to Hawaii. “leading into the game, I noticed there were a lot of injuries and thought I might be a shot”.

Scheduled to fly out on the Friday before her debut, Wilkins went about her week as normal, attending the scheduled training session to be quizzed about her availability. “I spoke to Ash (Renshaw) and she asked when I was meant to be flying to Hawaii just incase but I wanted to be available for the game so I had to check with Mum”. 

After training the initial team selection had Wilkins as an emergency, which she described as “bitter-sweet”, but as fate would have it as she went to leave training, Trent Cooper (FFC Head Coach) “came running up the car park to tell me that I had been selected” said Wilkins.

Following that, came a frantic rush to prepare not only for an AFLW debut but a family holiday abroad, a task Wilkins credits her Mum for being able to achieve.

Although the game didn’t have a fairy-tale ending, Wilkins said “I was so overwhelmed by the love and support of the girls, especially in the backline. Going up against a strong Collingwood side was pretty daunting but the support I got throughout the week filled me with pride as opposed to expectation”.

In the continuation of spectacular stories, Wilkins was matched against, Collingwood Forward, Jordan Membrey, a former coach of Wilkins.

Following the game, Wilkins joined her family in Hawaii for the holiday despite having gone through what she described as “one of the craziest weeks of my life”.

Now back from holiday and in pre-season for the 2023 WAFLW Season for Subiaco, Wilkins credits the experience with Fremantle for assisting her development as a footballer.

With leaders such as Fremantle Captain Hayley Miller and Kiara Bowers, Wilkins credits her improvement to the culture and leadership at Freo saying “just being around the stars of our game and watching how they approach training has helped me. I can’t wait to take what I learnt with Freo back to the Subi girls”.

Personally, Wilkins is looking forward to getting stuck into Season 2023 and has noted an improvement in the training standards through the early stages of pre-season. “Being at Leederville Oval has been great for the girls, and some fresh faces have helped step up our drills. I can’t wait for Season 2023 because I think we’ve got a great chance to get back on top”.