JORDYN Allen had been in contact with a couple of clubs heading into the AFL Women’s Draft.

But she had no idea which club would pick her up. The Pies ended up selecting Allen at pick five, and the 18 year-old is overwhelmed about her opportunity to pull on the black and white.

“I kind of just burst into tears when my name got called out,” Allen said. “I didn’t expect to have that sort of reaction but I honestly couldn’t think of a better club to be at and absolutely stoked to be in the black and white.”

Allen plays a similar role to Collingwood’s reigning Best and Fairest winner, Chloe Molloy. Both are attacking half-backs, but offer versatility through the midfield as well. The Dandenong Stingrays captain hopes she can make a similar impact to Molloy.

“I offer the half-back, a bit of attacking so I look up to Chloe in terms of her versatility,” Allen said. “So just like she got put forward and through the midfield, I hope that I can perform the same role for Collingwood.”

Allen led the Stingrays this year in the TAC Cup Girls competition and was named in the best in seven out of the eight games she played. She says Dandenong has played a huge part in helping her get to where she is today.

“The Stingrays have given me so much support,” Allen said. “It’s been phenomenal. “It’s sad to leave them I guess but I’ll always be connected to the Stingrays and always be a Stingray girl at heart.”

Being the club captain enabled Allen to add a new element to her game. She developed her leadership skills remarkably and was rewarded with a chance to captain Vic Country this year. Now, she has the opportunity to one day be a leader at the Pies.

“Being a leader’s definitely another aspect of my game that you have to kind of bring beyond your footy skills and it’s been awesome, you get to know people really well,” Allen said. “You get to see a different side of people that you don’t get to really see and create those bonds you don’t usually get to make so it’s been awesome and the footy’s been amazing this year. “We’ve had some really awesome opportunities and couldn’t be more thankful for all of the people who got me here.”

At Collingwood, Allen has the opportunity to play alongside former Vic Country representative, Darcy Guttridge. The 18 year-old is looking forward to playing alongside one of her favourite teammates at an elite level.

“I played a fair bit of junior football with her and watched her get drafted last year,” Allen said. “She didn’t play due to injury but played a bit of VFL (Victorian Football League) with her this year and she’s probably one of the best teammates I could have. “She’s definitely someone I look up to and I can’t wait to play with her again.”

As a junior, Allen knew that she was always going to do whatever her brother did. So when he picked up a football, so too did Allen. Now, she will be picking up a football in the highest level of female football in Australia, in what is truly a dream come true for the talented leader.