FOR COLLINGWOOD defender Emma Grant, merely making the trip to the club was an arduous task leading up to and during the inaugural 2017 AFL Women’s season.
After finishing work as a physical education teacher at Bendigo Violet Street Primary School in central Victoria, she would drive at least two hours to the club's training base at the Holden Centre, opposite the MCG.
That happened three times a week during pre-season – up to four when games were on.
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Her workplace and community were supportive but long days were inevitable. The initial excitement helped Grant push through the fatigue from the constant journeys, but eventually it all caught up with her.
"I was just so excited and so thankful for the opportunity I was given that the trip didn't seem to faze me," Grant told AFL.com.au.
"There were definitely times later on, probably this time last year, that I started really noticing it. It got to a bit of a dangerous point of driving after working a full day."
Training would finish and instead of sitting down to eat the club-provided dinner with the rest of her teammates, she would hop straight into her car to make the trek back home.
"My meal was always in a takeaway [container] and ready to be eaten, usually while I was going across the Bolte Bridge," Grant said.
Driving all those kilometres and racking up hefty e-TAG bills on toll roads showed how much she wanted to play elite-level football. Being named deputy vice-captain of the Magpies, along with Brittany Bonnici and under skipper Stephanie Chiocci, was a sign the club was impressed with her output.
To help develop her football, the 28-year-old moved to Melbourne at the end of 2017 and took up a job at Moonee Ponds Primary School.
Emma Grant is committed to making the most of her football career. Picture: AFL Photos
After a slow start to the campaign, she was one of the Magpies' best in their breakthrough win against Melbourne last week and believes she is well-placed to improve her game.
"I'm just better prepared. I can actually get to the club a bit earlier and go over those ‘pre-hab’ (injury prevention) and preparation things, whereas I used to walk in at quarter to six and have no chance for that," Grant said.
"[I can] have more conversations with the coaches. I'm starting to find some form now, which is great. Mentally and physically, I'm definitely in a much better space."
Grant's dedication and professionalism are some of her standout traits, according to her former Bendigo Thunder teammate, and then coach, Cherie O'Neill.
The pair was at the club together for its first season in 2011 and played in successive flags the following two years and those achievements, along with what Grant has done at the Pies, have seen her become an important figure in Bendigo.
"There are lots of little girls around Bendigo that aspire to be like her," O'Neill said.
