HAVING grown up a one-eyed Blues supporter, Carlton forward Bianca Jakobsson says running out in front of a packed house at the club's spiritual home last Friday night was an "unreal" experience.

"The support behind us was amazing. To go out there and see that sea of navy blue was unreal," Jakobsson told afl.com.au after Carlton's win in the historic first NAB AFL Women's competition match, against Collingwood at Ikon Park.

It was far and away the biggest crowd Jakobsson and most others on the field had played in front of. She said the key to the Blues' performance was staying focused early.

"We had to settle our nerves and try to play with some freedom," Jakobsson said.

The 23-year-old gathered 17 disposals and kicked a goal in the Blues' big victory.

Carlton coach Damien Keeping praised Jakobsson's efforts after the game and emphasised how important her second half had been to the result.

"Her influence grew as the game grew and we'll look to build that consistency across four quarters for her," Keeping said post-match.

Jakobsson was the first Victorian selected in last year's AFLW draft. Being drafted was a relief for her after a long stint away from footy recovering from an ACL tear in 2013.

She returned to footy in 2015, playing for Cranbourne in the VFL Women's competition, but wasn't 100 per cent ready.

"I came back and tried to play a few games and it just didn't feel right," said Jakobsson, who was born in Binnaway, a small town in central NSW, and moved to Victoria at age nine with her family.

Keeping coached Jakobsson in her first representative game back, for the Western Bulldogs in an AFL women's series exhibition match early last year.

Jakobsson, who started playing footy when she was 11, credited Keeping for getting her back on the right path.

"He instilled a lot of belief in me after that March game. He told me to just do what I do – take my high marks and run," she said.

Keeping said he rated Jakobsson highly because of her "incredible" athletic attributes through the midfield and up forward.

"She is a great lead-up target between the arcs and has an enormous athletic capacity," he said.

"She'll be the source of a lot of our ball movement through the forward line.

"I got to know her very well as an individual and her resiliency to come off her knee injury has propelled her into the top end of talent in the competition."

A sign-writer by day, Jakobsson admitted she never had a plan B for her career, even while injured.

"I didn't really think about (other professions) because I was always just so focused on football."