After taking the long route to get there, Meagan Kiely is still pinching herself over the fact that she's finally reached the ultimate destination on her football journey - the AFLW.
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The 27-year-old from Sulphur Creek was one of the feel-good stories from the AFLW's opening round after making her debut in Richmond's win over St Kilda.
Kiely, a premiership player with the Burnie Dockers who was drafted to the Tigers with the 48th pick in last year's national draft, made her presence felt nice and early at Frankston's SkyBus Stadium with a goal with her first kick at the top level in the opening quarter.
The midfielder finished with 2.0 from 11 disposals with one mark, five tackles and one clearance.
"It was really exciting firstly to be named for round one, but to then get out there and play with the girls on Friday night, that was really, really special,'' she reflected on Monday.
It was all pretty surreal to be honest.
- Richmond's Meagan Kiely
"It was all pretty surreal to be honest.
"I have obviously worked really hard to get to where I am, and it was something that I was not sure was ever going to happen.
"So to be in that moment and to look around and just soak it all in, that was just super exciting and I was pinching myself wondering whether it was really happening."
She admitted post-game she had taken some time to herself, as well as in conversation with captain Katie Brennan, to reflect on the time it has taken to get to this point.
The physiotherapist's football journey has also featured stops at Launceston, UNSW and Macquarie Uni before being drafted after a dominant season as North Melbourne's VFLW skipper.
"To just sit and think 'wow' this is where I wanted to be, and not knowing if I was ever going to get there, was special, and now after hitting that goal it is about what is next and where I want to take this,'' she said.
Strong support from family and friends on the North-West Coast, including old school friends from Marist Regional College and teammates from Burnie. made Friday that bit more special for her.
Also important for her was the support of coach Ryan Ferguson, who she said had given her the confidence to 'take the game on and be prepared to make mistakes", as well as the backing of her teammates.
While she described her goals as a "bonus", at the same time they were important.
"I trained as an inside-mid all pre-season, and I was lucky to get to the right spot at the right time [on Friday],'' she said.
"The strength of my game is my workrate, so that is about just trying to get in the right positions to hit the scoreboard.
"After my VFL season last year, the one area of improvement that our midfield coach and I did identify was trying to be more impactful on the scoreboard, so it was really cool to be able to do that in my first game."
Her performance caught the eye of both coaches, polling three votes in the AFLCA AFLW Champion Player of the Year award.
She said the lift in intensity between the VFLW and AFLW had been the biggest eye-opener for her on Friday night.
"The hits are harder and it is a lot more challenging and you have to be 'on' for every second,'' she said.
"So there is a massive step up in intensity as you don't have as long to dispose of the ball and you need to be sharper and be well prepared for what is coming."
Having achieved her first goal to get a taste of the top level, Kiely said she couldn't wait to see what the rest of season had to deliver.
"My goal all along was just trying to break into the team, but then bring my strengths to the team and see what I can do and how I can play my role for the team, and nothing will change in that regard now,'' she said.
"I will try to bring pressure, intensity, workrate and all those things that I really pride myself on each week."
Kiely and her Richmond teammates, a team which won for just the fourth time in its AFLW history on Friday, will face a significant test in the round two opener.
The Tigers are scheduled to host premiership fancies Melbourne at the Swinburne Centre.
"It is going to be a really big test for us as a group,'' she said.
"But coming off a big pre-season it will be a really good chance for us to reassess in what will be another step up from Friday night.
"We are just excited by the opportunity to play quite a strong opposition and girls respect Melbourne and they have a lot of great players.
"It will be good to see what we can do against them and how we can grow each game."
Meanwhile in other AFLW news, Launceston's Mia King has picked up a rising star nomination after her career-best 15 disposal outing against Geelong on Saturday, which included kicking the goal to put her side in front.