{"id":168831,"date":"2024-08-28T09:32:24","date_gmt":"2024-08-27T23:32:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/?p=168831"},"modified":"2024-08-28T09:32:26","modified_gmt":"2024-08-27T23:32:26","slug":"brennan-bullish-on-fully-fit-mckenzie","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/2024\/08\/28\/brennan-bullish-on-fully-fit-mckenzie\/","title":{"rendered":"Brennan bullish on fully fit McKenzie"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

RICHMOND captain Katie Brennan<\/a> is confident in her squad ahead of the 2024 AFLW season, and has her eyes set on one returning star who will make a big difference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After suffering an ankle injury in the opening round last year, Richmond’s young star Ellie McKenzie<\/a> was stuck on the sidelines. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“A big one for us is having Ellie McKenzie back,” Brennan said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We’ve seen glimpses of what she can do, or you guys have seen some, we’ve seen even more at training.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“She’s a superstar, it’s not like she will get 30 disposals a game but she might get 20 or 25 and kick a couple of goals and she’s so damaging with those disposals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“To have her footy smarts and her leadership around our group, it’s just huge, so a fully fit Ellie McKenzie is what you’ll see.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brennan also spoke about some new Tigers that have impressed on the training track and through the pre-season fixtures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We’ve also got some young girls like Charley Ryan<\/a>, who hasn’t had a clear run at it. She’s had some injuries over the last couple of years. This is her third pre-season and it’s going to be an absolute pleasure to get her back out there,” she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“[It will be good] to see her best footy, she’s come a long way [and] she’s really growing her game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Ally Dallaway<\/a> has been really impressive, Jodie Hicks<\/a> has been super impressive off half-back and will give us some great ball use and some young leg speed as well too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“It’s hard to pin-point them all, they’ve all slotted in perfectly and we are really looking forward to what they will bring.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brennan spoke about the whole squad and their mix of youth and experience now with the inclusions from both trades and the draft.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We’ve got a number of girls that have come in, a few from different clubs and then a couple in the draft and it’s just been such a pleasure,” Brennan explained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“They’ve just hit the ground running and [have] become Richmond people from the very beginning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We’ve got a mix of experience and youth and I think a lot of those girls have just brought some vibrancy to our group and slot into our gameplan really well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We’re really looking forward to what they’ll bring to the season.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finishing in tenth, just outside the finalists, Richmond look to build more consistency with a more settled line-up in 2024. Brennan spoke about the consistency that comes without injuries reaping havoc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Our biggest thing was consistency, I think we’ve played some really good football in patches and know that we can match it with some of the best teams in the [competition], who we respect highly,” she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We want to be up amongst those teams and I think consistency is just going to be the thing that gets us there, we obviously had a fair few injuries last year, so getting some of those girls back and having a healthy list will be the key to any team’s success in such a short season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We are pretty healthy at the moment, we are just looking forward to building our game week-in and week-out and trying to be as consistent as possible.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Signing a two-year extension on the eve of the season, Brennan continues her career at the Tigers after crossing over in 2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“[It was] really pleasing [to get that extension], I love the footy club, I love the people,” she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Our program is just going from strength to strength, so it’s a really good place to be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We are just building something really special and it’s a pleasure to be around, so I’m super grateful to the footy club for signing me on for a couple more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“I just can’t wait to see what we can build moving forward.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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