CARLTON recruit Tayla Harris says she’s feeling fantastic in the navy blue after starring in her side’s eight-point opening round win against Collingwood.
Harris was dominant up forward, taking five marks (three contested) and kicking a goal in her first outing for the Game Changers.
Harris said it was great to finally get on the field with her new teammates after a long offseason.
“It felt amazing. Obviously it’s been a bit of a build up with pre-season and the trade and all that sort of stuff, but I was just really excited to get out and play with the team and the girls,” she says.
Despite opening the season with a win, the star forward said the team’s performance against the Magpies was far from perfect.
“I don’t think we played our best footy at all, not even near it,’ Harris said.
Tayla Harris was impressive in her Game Changers debut. (Photo: AFL Photos)
“But (we’ve got) so much to learn which I think is a good thing… To get a win and to also get a lot of things to learn is always a good result.”
One of the highlights of AFLW round one was Harris’ towering mark and goal early in the game, with replays all over social media since.
While it was a spectacular play, the theatrics of the mark were less necessary than most onlookers might think.
“I thought someone was behind me, I thought it was going to be a nice catch and stay standing,” Harris said.
“But no, I had to be dramatic and throw myself on the ground… Probably not necessary!”
Harris said her marking has always been a strong suit, and that years of hard work have reduced it to a pretty simple process.
“I kind of just throw myself in the air and hope for the best to be honest,” she said.
And Carlton fans should look for more of the same from her throughout the AFLW season.
“If you want to expect anything from my game it’s traditionally been marking and contested marking - I’ve worked on that forever,” Harris said.
Despite being only one game into her Carlton career, Harris says she’s easily adjusted to the club and to a new group of teammates.
“We’ve gelled really well and we’ve come together as a group; we’ve had a few challenges along the way, and the way that we’ve gone about overcoming them has been phenomenal,” Harris said
With one win under the belt and still plenty of room for improvement, Harris is optimistic about the club’s potential this season.
“I think the fact that we play for each other and genuinely care about each other will take us to the next step.
“There are a lot of variables in talking about premierships, but currently I think we’re in pretty good stead to go well.”
