HERE!<\/a><\/p>\nTHE DREAM \u2026 AND THE \u2018LOW POINT\u2019<\/p>\n
Throughout a well-travelled journey that\u2019s taken her interstate more than once, Webster, 36, always sought the chance to call the AFL on television. <\/p>\n
But despite her non-linear trajectory, Webster\u2019s words ring true: \u201cEveryone has their own path.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCalling was always the end goal. It was always my North Star,\u201d Webster told Foxfooty.com.au. <\/p>\n
\u201cSo I thought, to get there, to be a sports journalist is where I\u2019m going to go and how I\u2019m going to get there. <\/p>\n
\u201cI always kind of thought, when I was younger, you\u2019d be a sports journalist and caller, right? If that makes sense. That\u2019s just how I thought you would get there. But there are so many ways to become a caller. <\/p>\n
\u201cAs I tell people all the time in this industry, everyone has their own path; there is no one path to becoming a caller. This is just how I ended up where I was.\u201d<\/p>\n
Webster\u2019s extended family is steeped in footy tradition. Her grandfather played for Essendon in the 1950s, and her great, great grandfather played in Pakenham Football Club\u2019s first premiership in 1909.<\/p>\n
And Jess, who hails from Pakenham yet was raised up in Brisbane after her dad sought a move to warmer weather, started out in Darwin as a NTFL boundary-rider. <\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve got to get in the industry before you can start to navigate your way through it, so I just took a job in the industry, happened to be in Darwin, and that\u2019s just where I started and kind of found my way through there,\u201d Webster said. <\/p>\n
\u201cI started my first ever commentary gig when I was a boundary-rider for ABC TV in NTFL. So, I\u2019ve come through calling community level, state-league level, AFLW, AFL \u2014 I\u2019ve done kind of the whole thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
After a stint close to home that included calling NEAFL games, Webster had the epiphany that moving to Melbourne was the only way to genuinely progress her career to get where she wanted to go. <\/p>\n
\u201cI started doing a few games a year for ABC in Brisbane, did kind of five years there, (then) I thought, \u2018Well, for me to take the next step, I\u2019ve got to move to Melbourne\u2019, because there was (only) a certain level I was going to get to,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
\u201cI thought, \u2018I\u2019ve got to go, this is where it all happens\u2019. So then I got to a point \u2026 when I first moved, got my break with Fox, and then the (Covid-19) pandemic happened. And again, I didn\u2019t commentate at all, anything, for 2020. <\/p>\n
\u201cCame back a little bit, doing a bit of boundary work on radio in 2021, but obviously, when the pandemic was happening, boundary-riders weren\u2019t allowed early, and so there just wasn\u2019t a lot of work there.\u201d<\/p>\n
AFL announces landmark new drugs policy | 00:58<\/p>\n
Webster commentated her first game for ABC in Melbourne in 2021 \u2014 a two-year gap from her last play-by-play call in Brisbane \u2014 and rose in prominence before her progress came to a screeching halt in 2024. <\/p>\n
\u201cI got to a point where I was calling regularly for ABC, I think it was 2023, maybe, where I was doing a game a week, which was awesome,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
\u201c(But) then I lost that the next year (in 2024) and was only doing boundary. That was when I was really kind of at a low point, thinking: \u2018Oh, is it all just kind of falling apart? I just don\u2019t know what to do\u2019. <\/p>\n
\u201cI was feeling kind of really lost and unsure where the next step was.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then, in the midst of all her uncertainty, she joined Triple M last year, where she was originally offered five play-by-play calls for the season. <\/p>\n
And not only did she wind up calling more than five matches, but she called Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera\u2019s match-winning performance in Round 20 \u2014 a fixture she wasn\u2019t initially rostered on to call. But she\u2019d made her own luck by then. <\/p>\n
\u201cLuckily, I think those five games turned into maybe 10, and so the whole Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera moment (happened). I wasn\u2019t even rostered on to do that game, and so I look back at that just thinking so many things had to align for me to be in that right place at the right time,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
\u201cSo yeah, that was amazing, and then here we are. <\/p>\n
\u201cI would say two years ago, I was genuinely fearful, thinking \u2018I don\u2019t know how I\u2019m going to get back to that level again\u2019. I just couldn\u2019t see a way forward. I didn\u2019t know when my next opportunity to call play-by-play was. <\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I\u2019m just really fortunate that Triple M gave me an opportunity \u2026 I had a good year with them, and then obviously I was still calling AFLW for Fox as well this whole time, which was awesome.\u201d<\/p>\n
‘Clear & obvious!’ Kingy on missed call | 02:13<\/p>\n
\u2018SLOW BURN\u2019 \u2026 BUT ALL ROADS LEAD TO FOX<\/p>\n
Webster\u2019s will be a new name to many, but the 36-year-old has been a part of the Fox Sports family for six years now, honing her craft in the AFLW sphere. <\/p>\n
Her first game with the network was in January of the 2020 season, having only moved to Melbourne six months prior to that. <\/p>\n
Webster recalls the moment she met Fox executive producer Leigh Carlson, who, after several emails asking for a chance, gave her the foot-in-the-door opportunity she\u2019d craved. <\/p>\n
\u201cI managed to track down Leroy\u2019s email address. And the email address is all I had. And so I was emailing the first couple of years, and yeah, there were no opportunities. Sometimes he responded, sometimes he didn\u2019t,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
\u201cAnd then I moved to Melbourne mid-2019. And at the start of January 2020, I was working for the AFL at the time in a corporate affairs role. And they had a meeting with AFLW managers at AFL house, and Leroy was there to present to the group. That was the first time that I saw him and met him in person. <\/p>\n
\u201cI remember thinking \u2018he\u2019s not leaving this room in this building until he knows who I am\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n
Webster wound up waiting until Round 7 of that season before receiving an unexpected call asking if she could fill in on the boundary \u2014 a gilt-edged chance she graciously accepted. <\/p>\n
And while the pandemic was declared the day after that game, she was invited back to do more boundary work in 2021, before getting her AFLW play-by-play chance early in 2022. <\/p>\n
Fast-forward to the present day, and Webster has completed five women\u2019s campaigns with Fox Footy, with her AFL TV calling career now flourishing. <\/p>\n
She\u2019s said previously that it\u2019s been a \u2018slow burn\u2019 across the 17 years, mixed with moments of doubt and progress as she fought to plant her feet in an inherently male-dominant industry. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you think about it, at 36, I\u2019m still young in terms of a caller. So I am still really fortunate to be given an opportunity at this stage of my career \u2014 that\u2019s certainly not lost on me,\u201d Webster said. <\/p>\n
\u201cAnd yes, it\u2019s a slow burn because it\u2019s a childhood dream, right? I\u2019ve been on the planet for a while now, and I\u2019ve just really wanted it to happen. <\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I knew nobody in this industry \u2026 I\u2019ve had to learn so much in the 17 years. When I first started, I didn\u2019t have a great concept of networking, things like that, that are important in getting you to where you need to be in any industry.\u201d<\/p>\n
Could Zak Butters end up at Geelong? | 00:51<\/p>\n
\u2018PROUD\u2019 DEBUT ALONGSIDE IDOL, AND WALKING KELLI\u2019S TRAIL<\/p>\n
Webster said that \u201clike any 90s kid\u201d, she grew up idolising Dennis Cometti and Bruce McAvaney \u2014 but as an early subscriber of the original Fox Footy channel, she also \u201creligiously\u201d tuned in to Clinton Grybas on White Line Fever and was inspired by Tiffany Cherry. <\/p>\n
And she was also heavily influenced by the likes of Dwayne Russell and Anthony Hudson \u2014 with the former by her side in Round 1 and this upcoming Saturday. <\/p>\n
Webster was also next to Russell when the duo commentated the Melbourne vs. Richmond Community Series game in Ballarat \u2014 that was unfortunately abandoned early due to lightning \u2014 with Webster cherishing even that preseason scene. <\/p>\n
\u201cEven when I called that practice game with Dwayne in Ballarat a couple of weeks ago was really a pinch-me moment. I\u2019m sitting in the box next to Dwayne, who\u2019s an icon,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
\u201cEven though it\u2019s a practice game, I thought, \u2018This is cool. I\u2019ve made it. I have absolutely made it\u2019. So that was a really amazing moment. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s been so supportive of me, and calling my first game with him, I couldn\u2019t imagine anybody better to call alongside. Special memories that I\u2019ll carry with me for the rest of my life. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s a legend and very generous.\u201d<\/p>\n
‘I’m not always going to do this…’ | 03:06<\/p>\n
In Round 1 of this season, Webster made her AFL television commentary debut, calling North Melbourne\u2019s win over Port Adelaide with aplomb. <\/p>\n
But while there were nerves, Webster, who\u2019s called more than her share of women\u2019s games, found unexpected calm once she was in the box. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere were general nerves, but I think I was actually a lot calmer than what I thought I was going to be, which was sort of a really interesting experience,\u201d Webster said. <\/p>\n
\u201cBecause you wait a long time to get a moment like that. But the one thing I just wanted to do was enjoy it. I didn\u2019t want life to kind of pass me by in that sense. <\/p>\n
\u201cI knew it wasn\u2019t going to be a perfect call. I knew I was going to learn a lot, and there\u2019ll be a lot to work on in the future. <\/p>\n
\u201cBut I didn\u2019t want to put too much pressure on myself, and I wanted to make sure that I really just was present in the moment and really enjoyed where I was and to be proud of how far I\u2019d come. I had a great time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Webster also reveres her connection with women\u2019s commentary trailblazer Kelli Underwood, another beloved member of the Fox Footy family. <\/p>\n
The pair\u2019s \u201creally special\u201d relationship spans more than a decade, and Webster now joins Underwood in ultra-rare air as just the second-ever female to call an AFL game on TV. <\/p>\n
That reality is \u201csurreal\u201d to Webster, who explained what taking another stride for women in the male-dominated AFL industry means to her personally. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s surreal. Because I\u2019ve watched her (Underwood) since I was a uni student when she called her first game. And I remember it so vividly as a poor uni student on a crappy old TV, tuning in and hearing Kelli and just being so wide-eyed and in awe and amazed at her and what she had achieved,\u201d Webster said. <\/p>\n
\u201cAnd we\u2019ve had a really special relationship. I met her the year after at a press conference in Darwin, and I don\u2019t remember who we were interviewing in that press conference that day, but I remember meeting Kelli. <\/p>\n
\u201cShe called me ahead of me doing my first game for ABC 10 years ago. She\u2019s been there every step of the way in my journey as well, and always been so supportive and encouraging. <\/p>\n
\u201cTo me, it means this is the new normal, right? I\u2019m not the first (female TV caller), and I\u2019m not going to be the last. And I think that\u2019s awesome. I think I\u2019m just another chapter in the journey. But this is what we want. <\/p>\n
\u201cKelli\u2019s a true pioneer and a trailblazer. I spoke to her ahead of my first game. And I just sent her a text and said, \u2018It\u2019s an honour to follow in your footsteps\u2019. It really is. <\/p>\n
\u201cShe\u2019s been so courageous in being the first and blazing that trail for the rest of us to follow. And I just said to her, \u2018I hope I do you proud\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Two years ago, Jess Webster had doubts that her dream of calling the AFL on TV would come…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":567399,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[1146,279178,279174,64,63,689,55,49927,279160,279162,7488,696,651,279180,61785,279184,279159,279167,279168,5249,1818,258511,141904,41966,160635,279165,279176,279179,279170,13659,61,167867,279172,279166,3231,1823,52778,681,279158,279177,647,8867,677,202770,279182,279183,6082,149178,279161,668,701,279171,279164,28362,279185,1124,279163,279186,85,59233,279175,33314,279181,45262,279169,279173,660],"class_list":["post-567398","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-adam-simpson","tag-afl-house","tag-afl-players-association","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-australia-and-new-zealand","tag-australian-football-league","tag-ballarat","tag-beloved-member","tag-boundary-work","tag-brad-johnson","tag-brad-scott","tag-brisbane","tag-calling-career","tag-childhood-dream","tag-commentary-star-lifts","tag-commentator-jess-webster","tag-community-level","tag-corporate-affairs-role","tag-darwin","tag-david-king","tag-dennis-cometti","tag-email-address","tag-end-goal","tag-epic-rise","tag-feature-interview","tag-foot-in-the-door-opportunity","tag-footy-broadcasting","tag-footy-tradition","tag-geelong-cats","tag-gerard-whateley","tag-ikon-park","tag-in-principle-agreement","tag-initial-five-games-a-season-deal","tag-jack-jovanovski","tag-jack-riewoldt","tag-jess-webster","tag-jon-ralph","tag-leigh-carlson","tag-male-dominant-industry","tag-melbourne","tag-northern-territory","tag-oceania","tag-pakenham","tag-pakenham-football-club","tag-pinch-me-moment","tag-port-adelaide","tag-practice-game","tag-preseason-scene","tag-press-conference","tag-queensland","tag-relationship-spans","tag-richmond-community-series","tag-rising-star","tag-second-ever-female","tag-south-australia","tag-special-memories","tag-special-relationship","tag-sports","tag-sports-journalist","tag-star-lifts-lid","tag-state-league-level","tag-television-commentating","tag-triple-m","tag-ultra-rare-air","tag-uni-student","tag-victoria"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/567398","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=567398"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/567398\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/567399"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=567398"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=567398"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=567398"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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