Emerging key forward Emma McDonald says committing to the Western Bulldogs for a further three years was an easy choice.
The new deal will see McDonald will remain in the red, white and blue to at least the end of the 2029 AFLW season, giving the Bulldogs faithful plenty more opportunities to enjoy her marks, goals and contributions to team success. see plenty more marks, goals and wins.
“It was a very easy decision in the end. I love playing at Whitten and I love the girls here,” she said.
“I’ve formed a very close relationship with Greg (Elaine Grigg), and even girls like Charlie O’Connor Moreira, Rylie Wilcox have helped me settle down and incorporate me into the team. They’ve helped me feel comfortable in my own skin.
“Even the defenders in Lauren Ahrens and Mua (Laloifi), they’ve really challenged me on-field so I can develop my skills.”
She was full of praise for the coaches, in particular forwards coach Andrew Killingsworth.
“(The coaches) have been awesome as well and have been very supportive in terms of my development,” McDonald said.
“The constant feedback, the support on and off the field – they’ve just been fantastic for me.
“Coming in (to the AFLW system), the physicality was a big shock, just because I was so used to taking uncontested marks in the Coates League.
“’Killer’ (Killingsworth) has been great in helping me with that. My body work is continually evolving which helps me against those bigger and more physical opponents.”
The 20-year-old might only be 15 games into her AFLW career, but has started to make her mark – kicking the fourth-most goals in the competition across anyone's last 10 appearances.
“All of the girls are just playing so freely. We’ve built up some form over the past few weeks – obviously getting that really good win against Sydney over the weekend,” she said.
“I think the game plan has been evolving over the past couple of years and we’ve definitely put in the work over the off-season, which is reflecting in the results on the field.”
The Bulldogs will come up against Hawthorn in Round 5 on Saturday 12 September.
