ADELAIDE forward Sarah Perkins has signed to play for Hawthorn’s VFLW team this winter. 

Perkins said she was looking forward to the chance to the play for the club she supported as a youngster. 

"They’ve given me a really good opportunity to come home and do some work for them off the field," she told hawthornfc.com.au.

The 24-year-old recently completed her second season with Adelaide in the NAB AFL Women’s competition. She kicked 11 goals and won a premiership with the Crows in 2017, but was less impactful this season.

She previously played in the VFLW with the Eastern Devils. The VFLW competition has been revamped and this year will feature 13 teams: Darebin, Geelong, Melbourne University, Casey, Carlton, Collingwood, Essendon, Hawthorn, Northern Territory Thunder, Richmond, Southern Saints, Western Bulldogs and Williamstown. 

Round one starts on Saturday, May 5.  

The Hawks applied for an AFLW licence last year but were not successful. The eight-team AFLW competition is set to expand in 2019 with the addition of Geelong and North Melbourne. West Coast, Gold Coast, St Kilda and Richmond will join in 2020, with Hawthorn and Essendon still waiting for provisional licences.

Port Adelaide and Sydney have expressed interest in fielding teams in the competition, but are yet to formally apply for consideration.