DRAFT night was chaotic for West Coast ruck Lauren Wakfer.

Already navigating the event on crutches, having injured her knee a mere month prior, the Eagles threw up a surprise, opting to follow up Wakfer's selection at pick No.15 with her twin sister Zoe via pick No.36.

The family went from having no AFLW players to having two in the space of an hour.

On field, they're different players. Lauren takes charge at the source playing through the ruck, while Zoe is a staunch key defender. Off the field, they enjoy one-another's company as they head along to music festivals and gigs as often as possible.

"We'll get the money back, but we won't get the experience back," Wakfer told AFL.com.au.

"So, we're just like, let's go out there, have fun."

The logic is sound, as long as the fun also comes with the hard work to earn it, and that balance was an important part of her rehabilitation journey back from an ACL rupture.

But it didn't prevent her from experiencing a moment of denial in the wake of the injury.

"I was still trying to prove to myself 'I'm fine, I can still run, and I can still jump, it's all good'," Wakfer said.

"It wasn't until my first consultation with the surgeon that I was like 'Oh, this is real' … I didn't realise how big of an injury it was at the time."

Once that understanding settled, the timing of it all became another stressor. Although West Coast had guaranteed that the injury hadn't changed any plans to take her, worries still grew in the ruck's mind.

"The Eagles obviously took a chance and reassured me really early that it wouldn't change the outcome of the draft or anything for me, even though I was still probably a bit unsure and a bit nervous," Wakfer said.

It meant that for her first season as an AFLW player, she couldn't take to the field. So, while unable to get to work in the way she had always done, Wakfer learned to apply herself in other ways.

"I took (the time out) as an opportunity to learn off the field and really learn more about the craft of the game and how there's so much more than executing a kick," Wakfer said.

"I just took every chance that I got, and it felt like I was able to come onto the scene a bit slower and develop a bit more before getting chucked out on the field and expecting to be the best athlete that I could be at the time.

"It was really easy for me to learn from the sidelines and gauge the expectation coming in, and then develop my craft further from there."

Forming close bonds in rehab with Kellie Gibson and Shanae Davison, who were both working back from the same injury, gave Wakfer a touch point in the club. It was a chance to establish friendships over a commonality.

"It gave me a bit of comfort because, as much as they probably didn't know it at the time, I leant on them a lot," Wakfer said.

"It's a big injury for us, so we were forced to be with each other for a bit … I was probably just some immature young girl running around and they probably had to get used to that, and I had to get used to their ways. But, as uncomfortable as it was, it was comforting for me."

The long road back to footy reached its destination in round one last year, where Wakfer made her debut against Fremantle in the Western Derby. She was quickly challenged, with the Eagles' No.1 ruck Sarah Lakay ruled out for the remainder of the season just a fortnight later with a back concern.

"I had to learn pretty quickly on the job," Wakfer admitted.

"I became the sole ruck last year and that was a really big responsibility coming from having a year of not playing football, to be the main ruck every week, which was pretty scary."

Her first game going one-out was also against 2022 (S7) All-Australian Breann Moody. No simple task.

"I think I just felt like I had to do it for the team, if I couldn't do it for myself," Wakfer said.

She settled into the season after that early shock to the system, earning a Rising Star nomination in round five for her 14 disposals, seven tackles, and six clearances against Port Adelaide.

With a year of AFLW footy under her belt, and a strong off-season, Wakfer has thrown off the shackles.

"I really pushed myself to go, 'I know I'm better than this… I don't need to be scared anymore'," she said.

"That was probably the one thing I had to learn by playing, rather than on the sidelines."