ON SATURDAY, Poppy Boltz will play her 25th AFLW game. She will also be on a quest to become a two-time premiership player, in just her second season.

Should Brisbane win, Boltz and fellow key defender Jennifer Dunne will set a new record for fewest career games to win two flags.

But there is a world in which she never reaches the AFLW. Born in the United Kingdom, to a British mother and Swiss father, both of whom were Olympic long-distance runners, several chance moments led Boltz to the native Australian game.

"I'm a Geordie. I came over here with, like, a full-blown Geordie accent," Boltz told AFL.com.au with a laugh.

A unique character, you couldn't tell that accent once existed as Boltz talks. But what is true, is that her full name is Poppy Rainbow Boltz.

"My middle name is Rainbow. I was born on a double rainbow day in England," Boltz said. 

She was eight years old when they made the move to Australia, and while the plan was for the family to settle in Canberra, what was meant to be a brief stop in Cairns became permanent.

"I'm pretty happy I didn't move to Canberra," Boltz said.

Following in her parents' footsteps, running was her sport of choice. But running, particularly long-distance running, is a lonely endeavour, and didn't quite match up with Boltz's outgoing, highly social personality.

Feeling a little lost, and looking for a new challenge, the chance to skip high school for a day at the age of 15 was actually what landed a footy in her hands for the very first time.

"Yeah, I wasn't the biggest school fan, but I was like 'I don't even know the rules, I don't know what sport this is, but 100 per cent I'll come and play," Boltz said.

"From there, I just kept working my way up, and I think it helped that I was already really fit with my running and quite athletic, so that was my benefit. But I remember, Craig (Starcevich) was my first coach in, I think it was under 16s in Queensland.

"I've known him for a long time."

So, when Boltz forgot to nominate for the 2022 Telstra AFLW Draft, she drew the ire of Starcevich.

"Craig hates me for this," Boltz chuckled.

"I lived up in Cairns, then I moved down to Southport and played there for a year, and I was a train on for Brisbane, but I didn't enter the draft. I don't know, I was just oblivious to it, I was so silly.

"And he's like 'Oh, did you enter the draft?' and I was like 'Oh, no, I didn't know I had to'. I thought surely there's some loophole, but he's like 'No, no loopholes'."

Instead of landing with the Lions ahead of 2022 season seven, Boltz then had to hang around and vie for the April Supplementary Draft.

It worked for Brisbane, with her hidden away for a few more months. A girl from Cairns just taking a shot at a stop-gap draft as the League transitioned to its August season timing. But the Lions knew exactly what they had bubbling away under the surface.

"They like to keep their Academy products to themselves because of all the hard work and all the trademarks that they like teaching these young kids. So, they know when they pick them up, that they'll sort of be like us," Boltz explained.

Even though she knew Starcevich was keen on bringing her into the fold, there was zero expectation from Boltz that she would see much game time in her first season.

"I didn't really expect to get a game because I knew how hard it was," Boltz said.

"I was like 'you'll make it, just keep training hard', and then for me even to be able to play in my first year, because not many Lions girls do, yeah that was a big achievement for myself. And then to play in the Grand Final I was like 'Oh my god, I don't want to feel anything else'."

There were times, however, where Boltz thought she wouldn't be in such a position. Midway through her first season at the club, she was dropped alongside Jade Ellenger for disciplinary reasons.

It could have sent the 24-year-old in a very different direction. But her open and earnest nature, and willingness to cop it on the chin and learn the lesson in those tough moments last year, have meant she is the enviable position of vying for another flag.

"There was nothing that we could have said or done to make it any better," Boltz said about the omission.

"We knew we had messed up, and we deserved the punishment. We played in the scrimmage match… played our hearts out, it's probably one of the best games I've ever played if I'm honest, and then just earning everyone's trust back was the biggest thing."

That is far in the rear-view mirror, however, with strong form in an important role proving crucial to Brisbane's recent success. Never having played in defence before, her height and strength was exactly what Starcevich was looking for on his last line.

"I don't really know how I became a defender," Boltz laughed.

"I remember my first preseason, I trained all preseason as a forward and then a little bit mid. Then I didn't get picked in round one, and it was game two and they needed a tall defender and they're like 'all right Poppy, we're going to give you this challenge'.

"It was the only position I didn't train for (during) preseason, but here I am, I guess."

Boltz has taken to that key defensive role with aplomb, and formed a handy partnership with Dunne, but she credits the support of Bre Koenen, Nat Grider, and Shannon Campbell, for making the transition smooth.

"If you think about who we have back down there, you've got your captain (Koenen) and your vice-captain (Grider), and then Shannon who has so much experience… it makes you so at ease, and we really do just work so well as a unit," Boltz said.

"And I think that's all credit to our backline coach Paul Hendrickson. He's a big reason why we're all so confident back there."

Boltz has played every game in 2024, helping the Lions shut down opposition attacks, and become the fifth-best defence in the League. Her best game arguably came in week three against Collingwood, where she recorded a career-high 14 disposals, six intercepts, and five tackles.

But equally important to her on-field output has been the different perspective that she is able to provide her teammates in nervous moments.

"I was talking to the girls the other day before the prelim and they're like 'I'm so nervous'," Boltz said.

"I was like 'Yeah, but how amazing is it that we can bounce off each other and talk to each other. Imagine going to an 800m start, and you're on the line all by yourself and you're feeling all these things'.

"I'm so lucky to have my teammates around me now."