"IT REALLY is a dream come true.”

These were the first words out of die-hard Blue Richard Bohanna’s mouth as he sat down in the 1864 café at IKON Park.

He feels like he’s won the lottery, having just seen his daughter walk through the Club for the first time as a Carlton player.

Wearing his Carlton cap and scarf, Richard is beaming with pride and one suspects that smile has not left his face in the nine days since his daughter Tara officially became a Blue during the 2024 AFLW Trade Period.

Carlton acquired the former Suns’ skipper and three-time leading goalkicker, sliding back from pick No. 41 to No.56 in the draft order to seal the deal.

For any player, changing clubs is quite a process. For Tara and her family however, this one had an extra tug at the heart strings.

“We knew there was interest from Carlton, Essendon and Collingwood, but straight away we didn't hear any of the other two,” Richard says jokingly.

“Tara had to make the decision for herself, we didn’t interfere... even though we wanted to!”

“I was at work (when the trade went through), and I was just like ‘I don’t want to work anymore, I just want to go home and celebrate.’”

For Richard, his dislike for Collingwood in fact preceded his love of Carlton.

Born in Wexford, a small county town in the southeast of Ireland, he arrived in Australia for a working holiday.

In 1990, he found himself at the Normandy Hotel in Clifton Hill, watching the 1990 Qualifying final between West Coast and Collingwood, surrounded by Magpie supporters. 

Wisely, he chose against the black and white.

“My excuse for the Eagles was that it was the closest team to Ireland.”

It was soon after though that he began his love of the Navy Blue, courtesy of the love of his life.

Richard had met Carmel, who as fate would have it, lived in Foden St, Brunswick West – in a household of die-hard Bluebaggers.

They created a Carlton household of their own, Tara the oldest, with two brothers Ronan and Cormac, and sister Meave – who attended university with Tara’s new teammate Maddy Guerin.

Richard and Carmel can’t quite believe where the journey of football had led their eldest, but they knew from the get go that when it came to football, Tara had a point to prove.

“Tara has had to fight since day one,” Richard recalls.

“In her first game, I remember the opposition laughing and pointing their finger that there was a girl on the team…. she then went and kicked five goals that day and her team carried her off the ground.

“She never looked back from there.”