News Ellie McKenzie 2021 AFLW Best First Year Player

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Mar 7, 2013
8,145
26,240
AFL Club
Richmond
Well Done Ellie. Very deserving winner.

47717591-43A9-488C-830D-13FDA0C9DF77.jpeg
 
Mar 7, 2013
8,145
26,240
AFL Club
Richmond
Nice little piece by Katie Brennan on Ellie


‘I THINK SHE COULD BE ONE OF THE MOST EXCITING FOOTBALLERS WE’VE SEEN IN THE WOMEN’S GAME’

Ellie McKenzie has been named the AFLW Players’ Best First-Year Player, presented by KPMG. Tigers teammate Katie Brennan has penned an insightful piece for aflplayers.com.au on what sets the young star apart.

I often say that I am Ellie McKenzie’s number 1 fan.

I was lucky enough to meet Ellie a few years ago when I was working with Fitzroy Football Club. From that point on, I watched with interest as she progressed through the talent pathway. She grew and developed as a player and watching her you knew she was going to be one of the ‘new generation’ coming through to play in the AFLW.

When she arrived at the club, she was like a ‘bull at a gate’ in her first pre-season. With most of the young players, you almost try to ease them into pre-season and protect them a little bit. Ellie had so much passion and drive, impressing everyone with her work ethic from the get-go. She came in and instantly became such a valuable member of our group. She’s a young leader and inspires our girls to work hard, compete and push their physical limits.

For me, the breakout game for Ellie came against Geelong, which was also our first win. We had a front-row seat that night to the Ellie McKenzie show as she waltzed up the wing, sold some candy, which was impressive enough. She then took on Meg McDonald, an All-Australian and one of the best defenders in the game, and just did her thing. Although we were already big fans of Ellie with her work rate and character, I think she would have definitely gained a few more fans after that display of confidence and poise.

She’s going to be an absolute star of the competition over the next 10 years; I don’t think I’ve seen a more complete footballer.
Ellie is incredible at ground level, strong over the footy, and her ability to burst out of the blocks, breaking lines and changing directions, is elite. She can also take overhead marks and kick goals.

We love all of this about Ellie, but most of all, we love the way she competes. To see her flourish and grow this year within our group and within our team was such a pleasure. At Richmond, we are all about character and connection.

She’s an outstanding young woman. We love what she brings to the football club, both on and off-field. She is a big part of our future going forward.
She’s only in her first year, but I think she could be one of the most exciting footballers we’ve seen in the women’s game.
The sky’s the limit with Ellie. There’s still so much development and growth within her game, and I have no doubt she’ll continue to take it to new levels.

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May 17, 2004
43,834
66,912
Punt Rd ‘17? ‘19?
AFL Club
Richmond
Nice little piece by Katie Brennan on Ellie


‘I THINK SHE COULD BE ONE OF THE MOST EXCITING FOOTBALLERS WE’VE SEEN IN THE WOMEN’S GAME’

Ellie McKenzie has been named the AFLW Players’ Best First-Year Player, presented by KPMG. Tigers teammate Katie Brennan has penned an insightful piece for aflplayers.com.au on what sets the young star apart.

I often say that I am Ellie McKenzie’s number 1 fan.

I was lucky enough to meet Ellie a few years ago when I was working with Fitzroy Football Club. From that point on, I watched with interest as she progressed through the talent pathway. She grew and developed as a player and watching her you knew she was going to be one of the ‘new generation’ coming through to play in the AFLW.

When she arrived at the club, she was like a ‘bull at a gate’ in her first pre-season. With most of the young players, you almost try to ease them into pre-season and protect them a little bit. Ellie had so much passion and drive, impressing everyone with her work ethic from the get-go. She came in and instantly became such a valuable member of our group. She’s a young leader and inspires our girls to work hard, compete and push their physical limits.

For me, the breakout game for Ellie came against Geelong, which was also our first win. We had a front-row seat that night to the Ellie McKenzie show as she waltzed up the wing, sold some candy, which was impressive enough. She then took on Meg McDonald, an All-Australian and one of the best defenders in the game, and just did her thing. Although we were already big fans of Ellie with her work rate and character, I think she would have definitely gained a few more fans after that display of confidence and poise.

She’s going to be an absolute star of the competition over the next 10 years; I don’t think I’ve seen a more complete footballer.
Ellie is incredible at ground level, strong over the footy, and her ability to burst out of the blocks, breaking lines and changing directions, is elite. She can also take overhead marks and kick goals.

We love all of this about Ellie, but most of all, we love the way she competes. To see her flourish and grow this year within our group and within our team was such a pleasure. At Richmond, we are all about character and connection.

She’s an outstanding young woman. We love what she brings to the football club, both on and off-field. She is a big part of our future going forward.
She’s only in her first year, but I think she could be one of the most exciting footballers we’ve seen in the women’s game.
The sky’s the limit with Ellie. There’s still so much development and growth within her game, and I have no doubt she’ll continue to take it to new levels.

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Great rap from kB, we Re certainly in great hands with her leading the charge , I really hope that she’s still playing when we jump up as a contender. Was pleased that she threw the monkey off the back and began to show the Comp the star that she is , a great mentor for the likes of Ellie and others to follow
 
Mar 7, 2013
8,145
26,240
AFL Club
Richmond
Great rap from kB, we Re certainly in great hands with her leading the charge , I really hope that she’s still playing when we jump up as a contender. Was pleased that she threw the monkey off the back and began to show the Comp the star that she is , a great mentor for the likes of Ellie and others to follow

I think there are several great things to come from the article. There is no doubt that Ellie is a gifted footballer but we've seen many gifted footballers fade into oblivion. The great thing is Ellie is prepared to put the work in to be the best she can be and seems to have been doing this from a young age. When the talent and work rate align you create a very special footballer.

The other great things to come from Ellie's season is that it suddenly creates a heap of excitement from the older players and they train and play accordingly. Its no coincidence that older players in 2017 improved dramatically when young guys like Butler, Castagna and Rioli were injected into the side and they had an impact. Jack Riewoldt mentions this a lot.
Ellie drives the younger players and I can see someone like Sophie Molan etc really benefiting from just being around her.
Then there are the other players who then get shocked into working harder because they now know that with each passing draft the talent is only just going to get better and better and they could be left behind.

It sounds like I'm overstating it but I see a heap of positives.
 
May 17, 2004
43,834
66,912
Punt Rd ‘17? ‘19?
AFL Club
Richmond
I think there are several great things to come from the article. There is no doubt that Ellie is a gifted footballer but we've seen many gifted footballers fade into oblivion. The great thing is Ellie is prepared to put the work in to be the best she can be and seems to have been doing this from a young age. When the talent and work rate align you create a very special footballer.

The other great things to come from Ellie's season is that it suddenly creates a heap of excitement from the older players and they train and play accordingly. Its no coincidence that older players in 2017 improved dramatically when young guys like Butler, Castagna and Rioli were injected into the side and they had an impact. Jack Riewoldt mentions this a lot.
Ellie drives the younger players and I can see someone like Sophie Molan etc really benefiting from just being around her.
Then there are the other players who then get shocked into working harder because they now know that with each passing draft the talent is only just going to get better and better and they could be left behind.

It sounds like I'm overstating it but I see a heap of positives.
Yea I get your drift , I’m still firm on adding 3+ senior quality players similar to the imports we bought in this season that will go some way to pushing us into contender status
 
Feb 14, 2018
2,396
4,354
AFL Club
Richmond
I think there are several great things to come from the article. There is no doubt that Ellie is a gifted footballer but we've seen many gifted footballers fade into oblivion. The great thing is Ellie is prepared to put the work in to be the best she can be and seems to have been doing this from a young age. When the talent and work rate align you create a very special footballer.

The other great things to come from Ellie's season is that it suddenly creates a heap of excitement from the older players and they train and play accordingly. Its no coincidence that older players in 2017 improved dramatically when young guys like Butler, Castagna and Rioli were injected into the side and they had an impact. Jack Riewoldt mentions this a lot.
Ellie drives the younger players and I can see someone like Sophie Molan etc really benefiting from just being around her.
Then there are the other players who then get shocked into working harder because they now know that with each passing draft the talent is only just going to get better and better and they could be left behind.

It sounds like I'm overstating it but I see a heap of positives.

You forgot to mention, she's Dustin Martin's favorite player :cool:
 

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