West Coast Eagles club champion Ella Roberts has opened up about her childhood aspirations to play in the AFL and her brutally honest take on how she thinks she’d go against the top male athletes these days.
Roberts, 20, shared her football journey in a recent interview, shedding light on how her ambitions evolved as she matured into one of the brightest stars in the women’s game.
As a child growing up in Margaret River on Western Australia’s south coast, Roberts dreamed big.
‘As a kid, I thought I was going to be the first girl to play in the AFL,’ she revealed on the BackChat podcast.
‘I had always wanted to be a professional athlete – then I realised how much I liked footy. So then, literally when I was about 10 years old I was like “I’m going to be the first girl to play in the AFL – and they can’t stop me”.
‘Like, if I’m good enough, why wouldn’t I be able to do that. And then I was introduced to the AFLW… in 2018 and I was like wait, that’s where I’ll be heading if I continue on with this.’
West Coast star Ella Roberts has opened up about her childhood dreams to play in the AFL
Roberts says she did a lot of her training alongside boys while growing up
Roberts did most of her training with boys as a junior and her talent was undeniable. She says it made sense to think she could make it to the top of the men’s game.
‘There was no reason why I shouldn’t be (in the AFL),’ she said.
‘I was keeping up with the boys who were my age – and if they were going to do well, and I did well – then why couldn’t I do it?’
Host Will Scofield then asked Roberts how she thinks still thinks it is a realistic aspiration.
‘Not at all,’ Roberts laughed.
‘No way. My body would be destroyed in a second. I’ve actually thought about it before… genetically-wise there’s not a chance.’
Under the guidance of senior coach Daisy Pearce, Roberts is says she’s excited for the 2025 season.
‘She’s unreal… the hype is real. Everything is great…
Nowadays Roberts says she would get ‘destroyed in a second’ if she played in the AFL
‘It’s awesome having a woman as coach. I’ve never had that before.
‘I absoloutely love it. It’s so cool being able to like chat about random stuff and then footy and then girl stuff and then footy.
While the Eagles have yet to reach the finals since joining the AFLW in 2020, their upward trajectory suggests 2025 might be their year.
