It's confirmed, Melissa Hickey will remain a Melbourne player in 2017 with fellow Darebin teammate Daisy Pearce. Zane Macdermid spoke with Hickey last month in the lead up to the marquee player announcements.
2017 is set to be one of the biggest years for the AFL in recent memory.
With the inaugural season of the women’s football league set to kick off in February it’s certainly an exciting time for female footballers across Australia.
One of those footballers keen to make an impact in the first AFL women’s competition is Melissa Hickey, 31, a solid half back from the successful Darebin Falcons in the Swisse VFL Women’s competition.
Hickey’s football journey began in her hometown of Mildura, growing up with two older sisters who weren’t exactly keen on their younger sisters football interest.
After much effort and persuasion she could sometimes get her siblings to join her in the front yard for a friendly session of kick to kick, however it would only last about an hour or so before she found herself kicking her ball at her makeshift goals and high fiving the trees in celebration.
Part of a family of diehard Geelong supporters, Hickey idolized players such as Gary Ablett Snr, Billy Brownless and Gary Hocking.
Opportunities for girls to play football in Mildura were quite low with the exception of the schoolgirl competition in which she got her first taste of Australian Football in the grade 5/6 team.
Hickey fondly remembers her early days in high school playing football in the senior competition.
“I think it was the physicality that I liked the most, I’m a very competitive person so throwing someone to the ground and battling another person for the ball was something I really enjoyed.”
With her secondary schooling coming to a close in Mildura, it seemed as if it was going to be the end of football for Melissa. She had grown to love the game and become quite a handy player in her four high school carnivals.
Hickey made significant life choices in the coming months, which led her to Melbourne to undertake studies at university.
Simply by chance one day in a coffee shop she met Daisy Pearce a female footballer from the Darebin Falcons in the Victorian Woman’s Football League.
The two sparked an immediate friendship that lead to an invitation for her to come down and train at Darebin.
It didn’t take long for Hickey to break into the premier division team landing a spot in the best 22 after her first week of training.
And since then she has never looked back winning five premierships at Darebin that has led to many other accolades such as being apart of the 2013 Victorian women’s team that won the National Championship in Cairns which she describes as the greatest achievement in her career.
Fast-forward to 2016 and Melissa Hickey is now a prominent member of the Darebin Falcons cementing her spot as a premier half back of the competition.
Being drafted at pick 11 in the inaugural women’s AFL draft by the Melbourne Demons, Hickey has been apart of the Demons squad for 3 years, after participating in the first women’s exhibition match at the MCG.
Next years women’s AFL competition is a milestone for not only Australian Rules football but also women’s sport as a whole in Australia.
“Being able to play football as a career is something that was never really considered by many women in Australia but now with the opportunities arising through the new female competition it’s becoming a huge possibility,” she said.
“Playing footy on the MCG was a dream that I thought was almost impossible but to be able to achieve that was something I’ll never forget.”
She hopes that she can remain a Melbourne Demon for season 2017 as the club has provided her with much support and opportunity throughout her career.
“I’d love to remain at Melbourne if the opportunity arises but just getting the chance to play in the AFL is what I’m really aiming for.”
Keep an eye out for Melissa Hickey who is sure to make an impact in the new competition in February.
Photo: Cameron Grimes
Last Modified on 27/07/2016 12:29