A HIGHLY talented draft prospect for a number of years, Majella Day was pleased with how her final junior season panned out. While it included a tough choice of not returning to Murray Bushrangers in order to focus on study in the back-end of the season, Day still produced plenty of big games through the Giants Academy and Allies to fill her cup.

“I think it’s been a very exciting year with heaps of opportunities,” Day said. “I think I’ve grown so much as a player and as an individual, it’s been good.

“I think with Giants we grew a lot as a team which helped us to perform well against the Victorian teams. “It was definitely a big transition playing in Allies, so many different teams come together to play, but it was good fun.”

The biggest moment from the Talent League Girls game late in the eventually drawn game against Dandenong Stingrays when Day’s Giants Academy teammate won a 50-metre penalty for encroachment that would have moved her from the wing to just inside the 50. In a shrewd piece of play, Day quickly summed up the permutations, and instead scooped up the ball herself to take the kick.

Surprisingly, no one questioned the change in kick to one of the most potential goalscorers in the league, and Day went back to slot the goal in what ultimately ensured the Giants took home two points, the only side to do so against the Stingrays. Talking about that moment to Rookie Me Central at the National Draft Combine, Day played on instinct.

“I think I just saw the ball and whoever got the free kick didn’t take it so I was like ‘alright I’ll take it’ and then went the 50 metres, and it set us up well,” she said.

Like the majority of players in their draft year, Day has her Year 12 to worry about with her HSC exams about to get underway this month as she hopes to study physio or occupational therapy at university. Those priorities, along with the travel factor to get to games week-in, week-out meant she put the last portion of her season on ice.

“I’ve just been focusing on school, obviously have HSC exams coming up so focusing solely on that, and my overall fitness and gym work,” Day said. “Absolutely, that was a huge factor, the travel component, and just balancing school, footy and travel commitments. That helped my decision.”

Really knuckling down on improving her endurance and speed this year, the border draft prospect said she was still working on the her “explosiveness out of the contest” in order to create separation from opponents.

Like any club-tied player, Day is just taking the draft as it comes. Needing to relocate regardless of where she goes, the Giants Academy talent is just excited about the prospect of stepping up to the elite level and show what she can do.

“I’m just going into the draft with an open mind,” she said. “Obviously have to relocate if I do get picked up so just see what opportunity arises and take it when it comes.”

If as expected that opportunity arises, she is focused on being able to make her mark early upon joining whichever new club selects her.

“I think just showcase just my weapons and showcase how determined I am to get better and to improve to overall help the team and overall help me grow as a player,” Day said.

DRAFT FEATURES:

New South Wales: Evie Bowie, Frances Walsh
Queensland: Zoe Petrides, Summer Browning
South Australia: Emily Mableson
Vic Country: Greea McKeegan, Lily Milner
Vic Metro: Bailee Martin, Tayla Olivieri, Maddison Meagher, Brylee Anderson
Western Australia: Lexi Strachan