A TOP draftee in the very first intake of AFLW players, Deanna Berry had to learn that talent was only going to take her so far.

Now a premiership player and captain of the Western Bulldogs, things didn't always flow smoothly for Berry. Instead, she has found herself at many a crossroad, whether that be at selection, rehabilitating injury, or being part of a club in turmoil. But she has always come out the other side as a more complete version of herself.

When the AFLW, and the first eight clubs to receive a licence were announced, it was clear for Berry that she was going to nominate for the draft alongside a host of her Melbourne University teammates.

She didn't have to wait long to land at a club on that first draft night back in 2016. With pick No.8 Melbourne signed star midfielder Elise O'Dea, and backed it up with Berry the very next selection.

"It was such a surreal feeling, I think. Walking in and getting invited into the draft night alone was incredible. I think going in as a fresh 18-year-old, (I) didn't really know what was going to unfold," Berry said on The Inaugurals.

"Didn't know what the League looked like; nothing was set in stone. It was just 'Come along, see what happens'. And walking into that room, there were so many people I idolised growing up, especially in that last probably three years prior to the draft.

"There's like Daisy Pearce, Ellie Blackburn, there was Elise O'Dea, Mel Hickey, there were just so many people in the room that I looked up to because they were a little bit older, I was like, 'I want to be like them one day'."

Arriving at Melbourne alongside many of those players she looked up to proved to be a blessing for Berry, who was just a teenager. But after a strong first season, in which Berry played every game and Melbourne narrowly missed the Grand Final, a contract wasn't immediately forthcoming.

Instead of sitting on her hands hoping that the Demons would come through with an offer, Berry and her management started to look around and see what opportunities might be available.

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"I looked at a few other clubs, there was no-one really reaching out as to where I'd want to go, there wasn't something jumping out like 'Yep, I want to go there', until I walked into the Dogs," Berry said.

"And obviously I had been coached by Paul Groves previously in the Vic Metro squad when I was probably 16, had a really good relationship with him at the time, and as soon as I walked in, (I) felt like this is where I want to play the rest of my footy."

That close relationship with then-Bulldogs head coach Groves meant some honest conversations were on the cards. In that first season wearing the red, white, and blue, Berry was dropped, and challenged to rediscover the competitive nature that made her such an impressive junior.

"It was a confidence hit, but the confidence hit that I needed there," Berry said.

"I thought talent would probably get me where I needed to alone, and I think Paul was someone that challenged me on the fact that I needed to continue to work hard … it definitely hit me between the eyes and took me a few weeks to probably understand that I wasn't just going to get back into the team because I thought I deserved it.

"I need to earn it, and that was something that I probably hold pretty close to where I train at the moment."

Showing up and proving that she was willing to work hard and fight for her place looked like 6am sessions with Groves at the club before both went to a day job.

"One of my things was I had to be fierce in the contest and I had to win my one-v-ones, and we played this balloon game where I had to beat him to keep the balloon off the ground, and he would come and put pressure on me … it's so vivid in my memory," Berry said.

After two weeks on the sidelines, Berry had done enough to get back into the team. First, a loss to Greater Western Sydney in Canberra, and then in effectively a preliminary final against her old friends the Demons. The winner would progress to the Grand Final, and the loser's season would be over.

The Dogs fought out a dramatic two-point win, with the victory just a little sweeter for Berry given the opposition.

One week later, Berry was a premiership player. She had reached some high highs, and some low lows before even turning 20, but it would foreshadow how her career was set to play out.

Four shoulder reconstructions, then an ACL injury meant Berry played just 29 of a possible 43 games over the next five seasons, which included the COVID-19 pandemic and plenty of uncertainty.

But the hardship also helped craft Berry into the leader she is today.

"It made me shift my mindset of this is what it is, and I don't have to do it, I get to do it. And I think I still live by that today," Berry said.

"When things are hard, I don't have to do it I get to do it and I just think being grateful and understanding that things in life don't come easy, so making sure that I take every moment that I can and be grateful for the experiences that I do get to have."

It was with that mindset that Berry was able to navigate the particularly tricky 2023 season, in which the Bulldogs, and coach Nathan Burke were underperforming and under intense scrutiny.

After landing in finals for the first time since the 2018 premiership, scrapping and fighting into seventh spot on the ladder, the next season was a harsh comedown. Little had changed, but the wins simply weren't coming, and they went on to finish last on the ladder.

"That was probably one of the hardest seasons of my career. I reckon there were so many emotions, so many elements of that year that just didn't go right, and we lost some really good people along the way which made it even harder," Berry said.

"I think looking back, it was incredibly tough."

The club rang in the changes at the end of 2023, bidding goodbye to Burke, its list manager, and a third of the playing list. A fresh start was on the cards, and that also meant a passing of the captaincy baton from long-time incumbent Ellie Blackburn to Berry.

"It was a really tough period because I just wanted what was best for the club. I didn't want the shift if it wasn't right, but I wanted it if that's what the club wanted," Berry said.

"I've spoken to having that really close relationship with Ellie, (it) has been integral and I think I wouldn't be in the position that I'm in today as a person, as a leader, as a footballer, if it wasn't for her."

Another key relationship in Berry's leadership was with new coach Tam Hyett. They were starting something fresh together, and bonded as a result. Hyett's style or empathy, care, and love, but at times with a hard edge, helped to shape Berry.

"She's changed the way I show up. I think I was probably a hard ass in terms of where I wanted the girls to go," Berry said.

"My leadership style is quite calm, but I also probably drive the standards a bit too hard at times… and I have these conversations with Tam all the time because we're pretty similar in the fact that that's what we want. We have to understand that it's a journey, we can't just go from a-to-z overnight."

There is a sense of challenge in everything Berry takes on. First, footy as a whole before a national elite women's competition was a reality. Then, re-establishing her place at a new club. Returning from a torrid run of injury. And now, leading a club into its new era.

"I was ready for it, but I think also throwing myself in the deep end, (you) either sink or you swim," Berry said.

"And I wanted to swim."