{"id":99233,"date":"2022-02-24T18:56:02","date_gmt":"2022-02-24T08:56:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/?p=99233"},"modified":"2022-02-24T21:16:20","modified_gmt":"2022-02-24T11:16:20","slug":"poppy-stands-tall-to-make-most-of-her-chances","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/2022\/02\/24\/poppy-stands-tall-to-make-most-of-her-chances\/","title":{"rendered":"Poppy stands tall to make most of her chances"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

FROM showing her wares in the NAB League with the Geelong Falcons, to missing out on the draft, only to then get the call up to play with the Carlton Football Club, Poppy Schaap<\/a> has made the most of her opportunities. The most exciting part? She is adamant there\u2019s more to come.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Schaap firstly shares how she got involved in footy, her pathway through to the AFLW, and being proud of her journey plus the challenges along the way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy family is a really big football family that always loved watching the footy and loved supporting,” Schaap said. “My mum and sister go for the Geelong Cats and my dad and my other sister are big Collingwood fans, which made me sit in the middle – I\u2019m a Western Bulldogs supporter, but I used to go for Geelong when I was really young. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“My mum and dad got me into Auskick at a really young age, I loved Auskick when I was six years old. I loved being active, I loved running around with the boys at the time, I just loved doing any sport when I was a child. “Having that footy culture in my family and having some really good mates that played footy really got me into it at a young age through Auskick. When it came to working out what team to go for, it was tricky.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“I had a family friend who was really big on the Western Bulldogs and they took me to a few games. I fell in love with the captain, Matthew Boyd <\/em><\/strong>and I ran around with his number on my back at Auskick for a few years. It was pretty hard to choose where to go but I\u2019ve been a Bulldogs supporter for quite a long time now so I love them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“I played a lot of Auskick, then I moved through and I started with the boys because we didn\u2019t have a girls comp where I grew up down in Torquay. I played two seasons of Under 10s and one season with the Under 12s and I absolutely loved playing with them. The boys welcomed me with open arms and it was really cool to play against boys and I really loved it. I sort of stepped away for a bit when it got to Under 14s because I\u2019m quite a small person and the boys were starting to get a little bit bigger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAt the time, I started playing a lot of representative basketball, it took my main priorities and I stepped away from footy. Then, I got back into footy through school and since Under 15s in school, I\u2019ve just continued playing footy and I\u2019ve absolutely loved it. I can\u2019t believe I went away for that period. I missed it so much when I started playing basketball and to be able to come back and play it through school, I just loved it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI was really fortunate to be invited to join the Geelong Falcons when I was 14 years old. I started off in the Futures program and I was able to train with the likes of Nina Morrison<\/strong>, Olivia Purcell<\/strong>, Denby Taylor.<\/strong> I had those older girls such as Lucy McEvoy<\/strong>, who I\u2019m really fortunate to be playing with again. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Having those older girls there and knowing that they were working towards something and that there was a pathway opening up, it was so special to me. Through my four years at the Falcons, I really developed as a footballer. I started to learn a bit more of the forward craft and I got to have a crack in the midfield in one of my earlier seasons and it was tough work. Getting used to the game and building my football IQ and sponging off those older girls and learning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 \u201cI was fortunate enough to play Vic Country in Under 16s and Under 18s and I had incredible coaches, teammates, staff, and they all had such wealth of knowledge. They know so much about the game and they had so much to give and I just wanted to get as much out of it as possible. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“I wanted to get to every training session I had with the Falcons or Country or wherever. I wanted to work as hard as I could and develop my game. I am the shortest player to have been invited and I know that it does mean sometimes you have that as a disadvantage, but it also means you can break apart the game in different ways. I\u2019ve always known that on the smaller side,  and that I have to use my smarts a bit more and find other ways to beat opponents who might be bigger, faster or stronger than me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe amazing thing about the AFLW and women\u2019s footy is that there\u2019s so many different sizes and shapes in the game and we all bring out our different things. It doesn\u2019t really matter what size you are. If you find the right way to play for your teammates and bring to your strengths to the game, what you do well and be the best for your team, you can do some pretty cool things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019ve definitely had some setbacks through my whole career, whether that\u2019s confidence or questioning whether I\u2019m doing the right things on the field, whether I\u2019m good enough to be where I am or whether I\u2019m good enough to make it to where I want to be. It comes back to whether if you love playing footy, then go if it. If you\u2019re not enjoying what your doing, there\u2019s\u2019 not much point doing it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Those times I was struggling, I tried and take it back to why am I playing? It\u2019s because I love footy, being there with my mates, tackling girls, kicking to people I love and I love being in that moment. For myself, I\u2019ve always been a big team player. In times when I was struggling with my own performances, I had a mindset of ‘how can I make my mates better that will make me better?’. If you can get back to the fundamentals of what you do really well and build your strengths, focus on them, it can help gain your confidence.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI think one of the biggest setbacks or challenges I faced was obviously being unsuccessful in the draft. It was hard to be projected as possibly being somewhere in the 20-30 range by a couple of media sources. After all of that, I was okay though. It was quite frustrating, but I had the mindset of ‘alright, let\u2019s get back on the horse. This hasn\u2019t worked out but what can we do to make sure that it will work out for us next time?’. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Whilst you can have that disappointment, you need to understand that disappointed does breed opportunity and motivation. I was very fortunate to put some hard work in between after that draft period and for Carlton to recognise that and wanting to pick me up as a replacement player, I\u2019m very fortunate.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Getting the Carlton call-up and the debut experience<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Schaap shares her reactions getting the call up to be on the list for the Blues, her experiences playing in the AFLW competition, and enjoyment being around the club in the wake of her senior debut.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTo get that call up from the Blues, I was absolutely ecstatic, I couldn\u2019t believe it because I actually planned out what I was going to do for the next season,” Schaap said. “I was hoping to play a bit of VFL and mix with NAB League. When the Carlton Football Club called me up and presented that opportunity, it was 100 exactly what I wanted to take.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI told the club I would be taking it with both hands and work so hard when I got into the club. To be presented with an opportunity like that, I was absolutely ecstatic and I knew I wasn\u2019t going to let it go to waste.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cComing from the NAB League competition, I knew it was going to be a big step and it felt even bigger. It\u2019s incredible the amount of work women and that girls put it and how fast and advanced the AFLW has been. I remember watching the AFLW competition a few years ago on TV and it\u2019s come such a long way, continuously growing into a fast paced, exciting game where girls are able to move the ball so swiftly, able to hit those targets really quickly and move the ball effectively from defence to forward.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHaving that debut against North Melbourne, I had to really adjust quite quickly to the pace of the game and physicality. It was probably one of my first times coming up against women who have bigger bodies than what I would have experienced. At the same time, it\u2019s really exciting to test the waters and see how you go against that sort of game style where it\u2019s really physical and really quick.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDebuting against North Melbourne, it was really awesome to be able to have my jumper presented to me by Nic (Nicola) Stevens<\/strong>, she\u2019s been one of my mentors in the forward group. Nicola has got a lot of knowledge about that game, a great player. To have all the girls around me showing their support and have that pure excitement to see me get out there was just really nice and having my family at the game and having my family\u2019s support in the stands.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe feeling of I\u2019ve finally made what I wanted to do was really awesome. During the game, I was really focused on the game and what was happening, but in the back of my mind, there was a moment where I was like ‘Wow, this is really cool, I am actually doing what I\u2019ve wanted to do since I was a little kid.’ That was incredible to be able to get out of the field and experience the game and style of football out there. It was a pretty cool experience.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Blues are a really resilient group, I know we\u2019ve had some tough losses the last few weeks but I think the girls ability to have that mentality of \u201calright, let\u2019s get back to work, let\u2019s learn from this but let\u2019s move forward and keep developing out game, culture into something we want to see.\u201d From my experiences, the girls have welcomed me into the group with such open arms when I first came in because I was a bit nervous and apprehensive about being new and coming into the group a bit late into pre-season. In saying that, they welcomed me so easy and helped me in so many ways, whether it be in the gym, on the field and giving me advice.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey have made sure I\u2019m really comfortable with the club and I think they have a wonderful culture, it\u2019s almost like a second family where you can approach anyone about anything and it\u2019s a judgement free zone a comfortable space where I can feel about myself and it works really well. We\u2019re starting to build and the resilience we have been showing is really impressive. Hopefully we can keep continuing that sort of path upwards to where we want to be.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Life outside of football, motivation, and rituals<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Schaap shares what she does away from footy, her pre-game rituals, favourite ways to spend a day off, and what drives her everyday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019ve just finished up Year 12. I am deferring in 2022 but in 2023, I will be going to Fed University in Ballarat and studying Outdoor Ed Sport and Health,” Schaap said. “I\u2019ll do that for three years and then do two years of Master of Teaching and I\u2019m hoping to be a fully qualified Outdoor Ed Sport and Health teacher. Currently, I have a job at a Woolworths supermarket and doing that in my off time and I\u2019ve just picked up a job with my school where we have a farm campus out in Scotsburn for the Year 9 students during the year so I\u2019ll be helping them with their chores, supervising and looking after them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m still sort of in the process of developing a rock solid pre-game ritual. I do like to get on the ground, if I can – barefoot. It\u2019s always nice to feel the grass especially if it\u2019s sunny. I like to get out on the ground and go for a walk. I\u2019m a big fan of music. In the car, if I\u2019m driving up to a game, I like to listen to all different kinds of music. I\u2019ve just started listening to a few podcasts and that helps me relax. As it gets closer to the game, I really like to focus in and have that energy going right before I get out on the ground.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI really like the beach. I haven\u2019t been able to go in a while but I do enjoy surfing and being at the beach with friends. I love spending a lot of time with my partner and we do spend a lot of time together doing a lot of fun things. I\u2019m someone who spends time with friends and family, being active in the outdoors. I love going for walks with the dogs and I\u2019ve always been out and about. I never really sat still as a kid, I always liked to be out doing things, going to new places and things like that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s my love for the game and my desire to get better and be the best person I can be for myself and my teammates (that motivates me). You\u2019ve never quite reached your potential, there\u2019s always some way you can keep going and keep improving on. I love the team game of footy. I love the feeling of tackling someone or watching my teammate kick a goal after I\u2019ve given a hands off to them. The exhilaration that you get after a game and spending quality time with good people. You know you have them on your back during a game and knowing that you\u2019ve got teammates around you, I think that\u2019s awesome.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Toughest opponents, and keeping cool in a crisis<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Schaap shares who the toughest opponent she\u2019s faced are, and the strategies she uses to stay calm during a game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m still learning a lot of AFLW player names. Once I get a few more AFLW games under my belt, I\u2019ll be able to name a few more names,” Schaap said. “I\u2019ve had a few tough opponents over my time. In the NAB League, I always had a good battle with Lilli Condon<\/strong>. We played against each other in the midfield. She\u2019s a type of player who is nifty and similar to my size. She\u2019s always given me a tough go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s important in a game to bring yourself back to the moment. One of my forward coaches has been saying lately is to be like a goldfish, where they have a really short memory. If something in the game where you\u2019ve stuffed up a kick, it\u2019s all right, that\u2019s it, it\u2019s done, you can\u2019t remember that. What\u2019s next? What can I do to and redeem that? It\u2019s about what\u2019s next in front of me. What can I do to make sure my next possession or my next bump or tackle is as good as I can be? I think for me, it\u2019s bringing yourself back to the moment, having some deep breaths and really focusing back.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Role models, and what footy means to Poppy Schaap<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Schaap shares what the sport of football means to her, and the role models that she\u2019s looked up to along the way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe sport of football means a lot,” she said. “For the last couple of years, it\u2019s really been my life. I think being able to go out there everyday, being able to enjoy almost every single day and the people that I\u2019ve met, the memories created and experienced I\u2019ve created through football are things that I will remember for the rest of my life, as well as those achievements. I think it\u2019s shaped me as a person and brought out some good characteristics and hard work, which I\u2019ve put into my study and working on and about being a team player and a really good person for other people.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019ve got quite a few role models. I\u2019m a big fan of the short people in sport, even though they’re quite tall compared to me. I\u2019m a big Steph Curry<\/strong> fan, for what he does, even though he\u2019s more undersized to guard. Simone Biles<\/strong> in the gymnastics I think is incredible. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Looking at the AFL and AFLW, I\u2019ve really enjoyed watching Jaimee Lambert<\/strong> for a few years, Mon Conti<\/strong>, she\u2019s electric with the ball, Courtney Hodder<\/strong>. I watched her game and grand final and for her size and what she can do with the ball. She\u2019s nifty with it and so incredible. In the men\u2019s, my favourite player for the Western Bulldogs is Caleb Daniel <\/strong>and that\u2019s why I chose the number 35. I think I\u2019ve always sort of watched it, how he\u2019s undersized, what he can do with the ball and what he brings to his team, despite his size and challenges he faced is incredible. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lastly, Schaap shares her wisdom to any upcoming footballers wanting to improve their game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI would tell them to focus on their strengths,” she said. “It\u2019s really important to build your strengths up to the best they can be because if you bring those to the team, it\u2019s going to help you out so much. Go find your coach, go find a teammate, talk to them about it and what you want to do, how you want to get better. If it means doing a few extras before or after training, it\u2019s going to help you out so much. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“The other thing is to watch a lot of footy, not just watch it as a spectator, put on your analyst brain and watch how some of your favourite players move, what they do with the ball, where they run when they don\u2019t have the ball. It you can sort of develop your footy IQ along the way that\u2019s going to start to create a different point between you and other players and  you can read the game and open it up a bit more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cKeep finding reasons that you love footy and keep reminding yourself of those when you find it tough, don\u2019t want to go on or think ‘this is too hard, I\u2019m not going to improve.’ Remember why you’re doing footy, remember your  mates that you’re doing it with and why you enjoy it and that\u2019ll drive you to want to be better and keep pushing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“It\u2019s about keeping persistent with things that you might find challenge, get those extras in with coaches and look for support. Use your coaches, staff members, teammates, anyone that you think might have knowledge about something and it\u2019s good to ask questions. There\u2019s no such thing as a silly question in sport. If you can get as much out from other people that you have knowledge about the game, it\u2019ll make you better for it.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

FROM showing her wares in the NAB League with the Geelong Falcons, to missing out on the draft, only to then get the call up to play with the Carlton Football Club, Poppy Schaap has made the most of her opportunities. The most exciting part? She is adamant there\u2019s more to come. Schaap firstly shares […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10004,"featured_media":99563,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3115,18228,8],"tags":[2917],"class_list":["post-99233","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-aflw","category-interview","category-news","tag-poppy-schaap"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99233","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10004"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=99233"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99233\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":99566,"href":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99233\/revisions\/99566"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/99563"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=99233"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=99233"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=99233"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}