IT WASN’T the traditional route that saw Marianna Anthony arrive in the AFLW world, but it certainly was a storied adventure. 

Starting off as a soccer player in the Women's National Premier Leagues Victoria for South Melbourne, Anthony made the decision to switch the round ball for the oval and try her hand at Australian Rules Football. 

Getting picked up by Essendon VFLW as a cross-coder, Anthony quickly got a hang of the game and even enjoyed a premiership win. 

“One day I just decided to make the switch to footy, which was one of the best decisions I’ve made and then I started playing at Essendon,” Anthony said. 

“I was super lucky to get an opportunity there as a cross-coder and I played three seasons, was super grateful to win a premiership, which really was the best experience.” 

Anthony decided to head to North Melbourne’s VFLW side to further her development: an incredibly impressive start to the 2023 VFLW season ended with her getting drafted to Carlton’s AFLW side. 

Speaking to Carlton Media just a day after being drafted, Anthony was still in shock, but was ultimately ecstatic with the outcome. 

“I feel over the moon: it’s just the most amazing feeling,” she said.  

“I’m so happy, excited - also just still a bit in shock - but also feeling like my heart is super full after speaking to everyone. Everyone has been super welcoming and warm: it’s been a really big but exciting day.” 

Having the determination to make it to the top level had been on Anthony’s mind since making the switch, knowing she had the internal drive to make it if she put in the work. 

While she put in extra skill sessions to learn the nuances of the Sherrin, Anthony said that the move to North completely changed the way she saw the game, after three years with Essendon's VFLW side. 

“There was a lot of hard work. Picking up a new sport, there was a lot to learn: I really needed to accelerate my skill progression,” she said.  

“I did a lot of extras outside of training: kicking, marking, all those things. 

“I think my hunger and determination to the next level is something that I’ve always had so I knew that was something that was in me, I didn’t really need to practice that. 

“What really helped was playing a new position [at North Melbourne], learning a new role within the team just helped me take my game to the next level – now I feel like I’ve got lots of different attributes which have helped me get here.” 

The reason Anthony didn’t pick up the footy from day one is a story that’s been told many times: she didn’t know it was an option for girls. 

Despite being obsessed with AFL, Anthony decided to play soccer, thinking that was as close as she would get to football. 

It wasn’t until the AFLW program was up and running that Anthony decided to switch codes and give football a crack. 

“I was so obsessed with footy growing up as a kid – I used to watch all the games, also used to listen to all the radio shows, just absolutely loved it but I literally never touched a ball when I was growing up because I didn’t know it was possible for girls to play,” she said.  

“The next best thing was soccer and then when the AFLW started and I saw how that took off, I thought ‘wow, I really want to be a part of this’. It’s always been a dream deep down that I didn’t really know was a reality.”