What makes Crows AFLW Co-Captain Ebony Marinoff such a good footballer?\u00a0<\/p>\n
That\u2019s a question opponents, teammates and supporters across the AFLW are likely to have asked themselves throughout the past 10 seasons, as the determined midfielder has built arguably the greatest CV in the competition\u2019s history.\u00a0<\/p>\n
So, on the eve of her becoming the equal-first player in AFLW history to reach 100 games, we thought we\u2019d try to get to the bottom of this and speak to her mother Kathy – who has not missed a single game since her daughter began her Crows journey in 2017.\u00a0<\/p>\n
When posed the question, Kathy simply explained that nobody thought quite like her daughter.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s just that she loves it so much, football is her passion, and when her mind is set on something she will do everything she can to be the best,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cShe lives it, breathes it and to see someone so dedicated to something, it is truly inspiring to watch.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cEbony has always said to me \u2018Mum nobody thinks like me, nobody understands how my mind works when it comes to footy, because it is genuinely all I think about.\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause she does have ADHD, when she focuses on something they become hyper-focused on it, which is really good in situations like this and I think a bit of a secret behind why she has been able to get the most out of herself.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Although her daughter now lives and breathes football, and is the AFLW\u2019s reigning Best and Fairest winner, Kathy admitted she never thought that growing up, Ebony would get the opportunity to play the sport for a living.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She revealed there was another passion she thought Ebony would have followed, that was not too dissimilar to life as a professional athlete.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cTo be honest, no I wouldn\u2019t have predicted things would have worked out this way back when she was growing up,\u201d Kathy said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s just because she played so many sports, and I just went with the flow in being like that\u2019s just another sport she\u2019s going to do. She did always say \u2018Mum i\u2019m going to play footy when i\u2019m older\u2019 and not thinking much about it I would just agree.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI actually probably thought surf life saving would be the path she\u2019d go down, she really excelled at that, and treated it exactly the same as she does with footy now – she was just obsessed.<\/p>\n
\u201cBack then there just wasn\u2019t really a pathway for her to play footy, but that didn\u2019t stop her daring to dream and I couldn\u2019t be happier it turned out this way.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fortunately for Ebony, the pathway to becoming an AFL player opened up at the perfect time, as the women\u2019s competition began the year she turned 18.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Having spent the past eight years watching her daughter live out her dream, Marinoff took the opportunity to reminisce on some of the highlights of the journey so far.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe biggest highlights have been the Grand Finals for sure, the first one especially wasn\u2019t really expected, so when we won, we were all in shock and such a surreal experience,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAnother one that stands out is when she kicked her first goal, just because it took her a few years to finally get it, and it was a bit of a monkey on the back for her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI can\u2019t even remember what season it was or what game, but I just remember that feeling of relief, and just seeing the smile on her face when it went through – it\u2019s moments like that you cherish forever.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen of course you\u2019ve got that first game at Thebarton Oval which was just incredible, as we got to see Ebony live out her dream in front of eyes and that\u2019s a feeling as a mother you just can\u2019t describe.\u201d<\/p>\n
Despite having experienced her daughter play on 99 occasions, Marinoff said her nerves have always stayed the same, as she is so desperate to see both Ebony and her teammates succeed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cLots of emotions go through me when I\u2019m up in the stands watching Ebony play, people ask me if I still get nervous after all these years and my answer is of course,\u201d Kathy said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m always proud, but not just of Ebony but all the girls out there on the field, as over these past 10 seasons I\u2019ve watched them all grow and in a way they feel a little bit like my children as well.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen they play together as a team it is such a cool thing to watch, and when it comes to Ebony I know she gives her all to every game she plays, which is a trait I am just so proud to see in her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBeing part of this team in a small way is so incredible, and I can\u2019t wait to watch all the girls give it their very best on Sunday.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n