THERE'S a buzz at IKON Park.
While there’s been little breathing room between the sixth and seventh season of AFLW, Carlton midfielder Maddy Guerin was raring to return to IKON Park for the second pre-season of the year, and the sixth of her career.
“A lot of us had a bit of a break straight after the season and then wanted to get back into it, because we love training,” Guerin told womens.afl.
“Everyone’s really pumped to be back at the Club and to get into games really soon.”
Well and truly entrenched in pre-season preparations, Guerin has been taking the opportunity to lean on those around her to help hone her skills.
“We’ve had great resources in the off-season to help us improve those little things that you might not have as much time to work on during the season,” Guerin said.
“'Simmo' [Kade Simpson] has been able to give me help controlling my kick, getting a bit more of an arc and relaxing into it.”
The 22-year-old is coming off an impressive back-half of the season, headlined by a career-best performance against eventual Grand Finalists (and former side) Melbourne, collecting 19 disposals and laying 12 tackles.
However, Guerin still believes she’s yet to reach her ceiling and is fuelled by a renewed perspective granted after sustaining a season-ending ACL injury in 2020.
“Doing a serious injury like an ACL was quite scary, knowing what that could mean for my career.
“I was really lucky that Carlton showed a lot of faith in me to sign me on.
“I learned a lot through that process – it really fuelled my desire to not waste any time and to be the best player I can be now.”
After spending most of her time in Carlton’s backline in her return season - and first in Navy Blue - back in 2021, Guerin’s midfield minutes have been steadily on the rise.
“By the end of the year, we did change up the midfield a little bit," she said.
“We threw a bit of speed in there – we had Keeley Sherar and Mimi Hill spend a bit more time inside, and I spent a lot more time in the middle."
And there’s no shortage of personnel who can rotate through alongside Guerin.
“We’ve still got Abbie McKay and Elise O’Dea - who provides a mature head - as well as Jess Dal Pos who can run through there too.
“There are exciting prospects in there and we’ll get to see how it all fits together come practice match time.”
Carlton will officially test out its combinations in the team's first game prior to season seven in a practice match on Saturday 13 August at IKON Park against Melbourne.
