POTENTIAL Fremantle father-daughter prospect Jorja Haines would love to don the purple at AFL Women’s level, but is keeping her options open this year to give herself “the best chance” at reaching the elite level.

The Peel Thunder top-ager boasts some nice explosive traits and footy skills to go with her natural footballing abilities, and though she was robbed of a bottom-age year due to an ankle injury, is hitting the ground running in 2024.

“I started playing footy when I was 14 just at the local club, a few friends made me go down,” Haines said. “Then a few years after playing that I was training with Peel in Rogers Cup and then a year after playing Rogers I played one League year, and then last year I started doing League and then I kinda did my ankle last season and missed the whole season.”

Haines said the struggle watching from the sidelines was “definitely hard” ut she was determined to just help wherever she could from the coaches box. It gave her a new perspective on her football, and now the 17-year-old has been digging deep, getting into more swimming and running sessions prior to the season.

It enabled her to return to the side in Round 1 where she had 10 touches, two marks and laid four tackles in a solid performance against West Perth, before stepping up with 14 disposals, one mark and three tackles in a heavy defeat to Swan Districts yesterday.

Though viewing herself as a midfielder long-term, the utility is happy to cut her teeth in the forward half of the ground until she gets back into the swing of things. Still, Haines can tend to find herself around the stoppages as part of the midfield rotation for the Thunder.

“I’m hoping to play mid towards the back end of the season but I definitely see myself starting in the forward role just to get back into it after not playing for so long,” Haines said. “But looking forward to getting into the midfield.”

Peel is going through a rebuilding stage at the moment, with Haines surprisingly one of the older players given the turnover of the list going to the elite level or moving on.

“It’s exciting to see all the new talent come through, but it’s exciting for girls to come in and looking up to you for guidance because they’re new and they don’t know what to expect,” Haines said. “It’s really good, I really enjoy guiding all those girls through their journey.”

Rating her kicking as a strength alongside her explosiveness from stoppages, Haines said she was focusing in on her endurance “as that’s always been a downfall” as well as being more effective with her opposite side.

Looking up to Kiara Bowers at the elite level, Haines aspires to push herself to the limit in order to chase her dream. Her father Daniel played 16 games for the Dockers across the 2002-03 seasons, before moving back to Peel Thunder where she captained the club and won a couple of best and fairests.

Haines said her father had influenced her career more than anyone else.

“Especially at home and on and off the field,” she said. “Just guiding me, helping me, giving me advice whenever I need so that’s been really good.”

As for her ties with Fremantle, Haines said she “hasn’t really had any discussions” but completed a Next-Generation Academy (NGA) training session with the Dockers, and would love to play for the club she has grown up supporting. In saying that, she is not going to pidgeonhole her focus on just one club.

“I definitely still want to go national just to give myself the best chance just in case Freo don’t want to pick me up,” Haines aid. “I will nominate nationally just in case.”

It comes as no surprise that her goals for 2024 are about continuity and consistency in order to achieve her dream.

“Definitely get drafted at the end of the year, but a big goal is to play every WAFLW game and just to get better every game,” Haines said.