Alicia Eva poses for a photo during Greater Western Sydney’s official team photo day on May 26, 2025. Picture: AFL Photos

ALICIA Eva’s decision to hand over Greater Western Sydney’s captaincy before the 2024 NAB AFLW season was for a multitude of reasons.

Giving the club a fresh perspective was one. Offering her a chance to delve a little further into her coaching career was another. But privately, the key driver was that she and partner Claudia wanted to become parents, and were preparing for a life where that was realised.

And in April, little Patrick arrived into the world.

“We’d been thinking about it probably for the 12 to 18 months before Paddy came along,” Eva told AFL.com.au.

“There were a few plans underway. When I stepped away from the captaincy, we knew that this was a journey we were trying to go on, and we’d have some hurdles along the way. And that was always kind of the plan in terms of I wanted to have a family while I was playing, and share that with a family.

“So, we’d been thinking about it for a while and there were a couple of hurdles that pushed it out a little bit.”

Alicia Eva celebrates a goal during Greater Western Sydney’s clash against Sydney in round four, 2024. Picture: Getty Images

Paddy came along a little early, meaning that the family spent two weeks in a newborn care unit to help him in those first days. Then, it was Claudia who needed some extra medical care.

“We were in newborn care for a couple of weeks, and then ‘Claude’ actually got sepsis, so she got really sick,” Eva said.

“So, he was in hospital, and then Claude had to go back into hospital. That two weeks, it was just neither her or I slept, and he was OK, he was just a little bit underdone; he just needed some extra care for those first two weeks.”

Eva was trying to balance the care of her family, trips to hospital, and her obligations to the club. But it was a bit of a reality check for the AFLW stalwart, who learned that footy shouldn’t be, and couldn’t be, everything to her.

“Sometimes I’ve fallen victim to footy, you try and invest everything into it, and then that’s all your mental space, it’s all your energy, it’s all your emotion. And, if you’re not careful, you turn around and you either can’t switch off or you don’t have anything else that you can really tie yourself to,” Eva said.

“That’s why I’m so excited for this year, because (if) we have a shitty game, I’m going to be the same me that gets annoyed and whatnot, but I get to come home to Claude and Patrick, and I get the energy from there. And then I come back in and look to work harder within the time that I’m here, and sharing the success when we have it.

“I feel like I finally have a really healthy balance between all the different things.”

Last year, Eva was a line coach with the Giants’ VFL men’s program, but this year that role has shifted to an opposition analysis role. Another chance to lighten the load, but not giving up on her coaching development.

Knowing that she is closer to the end of her playing career than the start, Eva has always been preparing for that next step, but now it’s no longer just for her own personal development, but for the sake of her family.

“As a self-proclaimed perfectionist, which I think many women in this industry have had to be, I kind of feel like I’ve gone above and beyond in things that I need to do… you don’t need tens of thousands of clips, you just need the one clip that shows exactly that, and then you need to be able to present it in a really articulate way for the players,” Eva said.

Alicia Eva conducts a clinic with players during an AFL Play Coach Accreditation Framework media opportunity on November 7, 2024. Picture: AFL Photos

“I was trying to do everything, and I think probably the scary part now that I’m a parent is that you kind of have to have one eye on the future in terms of what I do when I stop playing because now we’re a family unit.”

Early days of AFLW contracts were year to year, with very little certainty following the immediate season in play. As the League has grown, Eva has found a little more surety about where she’ll be in the next year, but that doesn’t just mean playing contracts, it also means her coaching development.

Being in Sydney means neither Eva or Claudia have family in the area, and although they have a strong support system around them, there is still an element of pressure on their shoulders to establish long-term security.

“I need to think ahead of time. So, going back a month ago, I kind of felt like I was running myself into the ground because I was trying to do this really well, because I’ve got to look after what my employment looks like for me in years to come, while also being (a) fit and healthy player for W, but most importantly, then try and be home with Claude,” Eva explained.

“So, I think the toughest thing is being Claude and I are up here. We don’t have family in Sydney, so that’s been a challenge in terms of just wanting to make sure I’m around with Claude, and then when I am home with Claude and Paddy, I am there and present.”

The experience of becoming a mum has also been a different one for Eva who, as the support partner throughout the birth, couldn’t quite relate to the experiences of her mother or sisters.

Instead, it’s been former coach Alan McConnell with whom she has been able to connect.

“When you speak to many women who have had children, they talk about how the experience is what it is. It’s birthing a baby, but they almost, whatever it is in terms of adrenaline, they kind of forget or whatever the body does to encourage women to have more children post that, because the body’s going through significant trauma,” Eva said.

“But it was interesting talking to my mum and my sisters about the perspective I had and how incredible it was. And then I actually spoke to Al McConnell, our former coach who, he’s the second dad up here to me, and he just said it’s like nothing else. And it was really nice to share that experience with him as well.

Alicia Eva and Alan McConnell are seen during the AFLW season launch on January 27, 2021. Picture: AFL Photos

“That’s where to me this club kind of transcends the cliché of a family club. Alan hasn’t coached me in four seasons, but it was nice to be able to share and have that conversation with him.”

But the best part of it all is going home to Claudia and Paddy every night.

“There have been a couple of days where, early on, it was tough. I think there was a night where I had three and a half hours’ sleep and I’m not even the breastfeeding mum. So, there’s been a couple of days where my eyeballs have been falling out of my head,” Eva said.

“But in saying that, I do come in with a new energy. The ethos of quality, not quantity. So, I don’t want to be here for two hours longer than what I should, because I want to get home for bath time, and I want to get home to have our little song and dance before he goes to bed.”