{"id":215525,"date":"2026-05-25T08:36:18","date_gmt":"2026-05-24T22:36:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/?p=215525"},"modified":"2026-05-25T08:36:19","modified_gmt":"2026-05-24T22:36:19","slug":"2026-aflw-draft-qa-maddie-campbell","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/2026\/05\/25\/2026-aflw-draft-qa-maddie-campbell\/","title":{"rendered":"2026 AFLW Draft Q&A: Maddie Campbell"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

NORTH Queenslander Maddie Campbell<\/a> was spotted early by the Suns Academy as a prestigious talent in Cairns, and uprooting her life to move to the Gold Coast, the top-age midfielder\/forward is hoping it pays dividends. Her dedication to her craft is undoubted, and while the ultimate goal is something in the background, Campbell is taking it one step at a time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We spoke to Campbell at the Queensland Preseason Testing Day about her footy journey, game, inspirations and goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Q: Maddie, tell us a little bit about your footy journey?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

MC:<\/strong> “Well I grew up in Cairns, I was in the Suns Academy when I was Under 12s and I’ve just gone through the years and now I’ve ended up here. I moved to the Gold Coast two years ago to hopefully better my footy chances.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q: Whose had the most influence on your individual career?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

MC:<\/strong> “Probably my dad. Just from a young age he’s played footy his whole life. He mainly introduced me to it, and he’s sacrificed a lot of things for me to come down here and move down here to play and he does teach me a few things even though I might not want to learn from him, but he’s good.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q: What position are you looking to play this year?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

MC:<\/strong> “I’m keen to play in the middle and a little bit of forward. But we’ll just see, not too sure yet.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q: Coming from Cairns, what kind of travel were you doing prior to relocating?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

MC:<\/strong> “Mainly when I was younger we did some camps and trial games in Townsville. Mainly just Townsville, and then when I was 16 that’s when we did more travelling to Sydney to Melbourne and that’s when I moved down. Not too much travel up in Cairns, just a bit of roadtrips.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q: What do you see as some of the strengths in your game?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

MC:<\/strong> “I think I’ve got a pretty good kick. I think I’ve worked a lot on my strength and in the gym this year so I think I’ve gotten a lot stronger so I can use that more around the ball and contests.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q: What about some of the improvements you’re looking to make?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

MC:<\/strong> “I think I could always improve my running and just building that longer endurance and tank to get to more contests.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q: Which AFLW club do you support?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

MC:<\/strong> “I support Suns.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q: Who’s a player at the top level you look up to or model your game on?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

MC:<\/strong> “I look up to Charlie Rowbottom<\/strong>. I think she’s a beast and very strong and I think I really admire that of her how she uses her strength everywhere.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q: Finally, what goals do you set for yourself this year?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

MC:<\/strong> “I’m keen to just play some games. I’m really looking forward to having a good year, playing consistent footy and just really trying to make those top teams like Queensland and getting noticed up in the higher levels.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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