Madison Brazendale may have only been playing footy for three years but it's no surprise she's thriving given her sporting background.
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The 19-year-old is one of Australia's best young hurdlers and has been a standout touch footy player for years.
The Launceston Blues wing was selected by Greater Western Sydney at pick 75 in the AFLW draft on Wednesday night.
The room erupted with loud cheers of congratulations. "I had all my family and close friends around me (in Launceston)," she said.
"It was pretty exciting to have them all there with me and experiencing it with them.
"It's a pretty nerve-racking process, but I have had some good chats with GWS. So I went in there with a little bit of reassurance but still you just don't know until you hear your name.
"There's no real links between Tassie and GWS but they just took an interest and we started talking and it went from there."
Her phone was buzzing non-stop last night as the Giants welcomed her to the group.
"I got lots of messages from the girls to say congratulations and they're so excited to have me as part of the team," she said.
"So that was just really nice to already feel like you're part of it all straightaway."
She can't wait to earn their respect and leaves on Monday for pre-season.
How did the elite junior runner get interested in footy?
"When I was younger, I played a variety of sports from soccer to tennis, just anything really, I had a go at anything," she said.
"But then I started athletics and cross-country and found a real love for it and I've done that for the past 10 years.
"And I continue to do athletics but about three years ago, one of my friends said 'do you want to come and play footy? We don't have many girls in our team'. I was like, 'Yeah, I'll give it a go.
"So for the first year was about getting used to it. Then the next year, I made the Devils team and played for them. And then this year, I just really started to learn how to play the game and my role within the team."
Current South Launceston gun Aprille Crooks was the friend who got her involved.
Brazendale has otherwise continued to excel in her favouite athletics events.
"I started off as a distance runner and then I went into steeplechase," she said.
"So the two-kilometre steeplechase, which I was ranked fifth in Australia for when I did it. And then I went into 400-metre hurdles as I got older and I've been doing that nationally for the past two years."
Brazendale came seventh in the 400m hurdles this year at nationals in Sydney.
Her coach Fay Denholm, a highly-respected figure in Tasmanian athletics, encouraged her to take up those unique events which involve running and jumping.
"My coach told me I was always a good hurdler and I was a good distance runner, so why not combine the two together," Brazendale said.
"So we put them together to see how that went and it went well. I was really enjoying it. It gave me something else to not have my mind on instead of just running laps."
She won't completely close the door on her running.
"Through the footy season, I'll give athletics a break. But it's always an option during the off-season to keep running and keep my fitness up because I really do love it," she said.
Brazendale competes for North Launceston Athletic Club.
She was also part of the Launceston and Glen Dhu Little Athletics clubs.
Touch footy has likewise been a big presence in the teenager's life and she's played for Aztecs in recent years.
She has also represented the state most years since she was 11.
"My mum (Julie) and dad (Tony) played it when I was younger and then my brother (Thomas) started, and I always wanted to just do what my brother did. So I got into it after watching him play," she said.
She highlighted how touch footy complemented her football.
"Obviously it's different, touch involves throwing the ball but it definitely still helps with your hands being able to catch the ball and everything," she said.
"In terms of speed and agility, touch has definitely helped with my footy."
The former Riverside Primary, Riverside High and Launceston College student is enjoying a gap year and has undertaken some teacher assistant work.
Brazendale, who played two years with the Tasmania Devils and one with the Allies, spoke of why she enjoys her role on the wing.
"I just love that it's such an open space to run in, you get the ball and you can run and carry and push it forward," she said.
"But I also like to, when I'm a winger, go into defence and help out. I just use my work rate to help the team push forward."
Meghan Gaffney, from Ulverstone, who was taken at pick 66, is also going to GWS.
"When I started Devils, Gaff was also a winger," Brazendale said.
"She helped me out and guided me around and showed me how to play the wings. I learned a lot from her.
"She has been a close friend through Devils. So it'll be really exciting to move up with her and start this journey together."
Tasmania Devils coach Jeromey Webberley was thrilled for the pair.
"It's probably been known for a little while there was a lot of interest in Brazendale and Gaffney at GWS, they've put a lot of work into those two girls and they probably meet a needs-basis for GWS," he said.
"It was good to finally get the three (Devils) girls read out and a great reward for effort."
He lauded their running abilities. "Gaffney and Brazendale, their athletic profile is huge, they're both great endurance athletes," he said.
"They've got good leg speed as well and they're both 19 years of age.
"I think they can go in and make an immediate impact."
North Hobart midfielder Claire Ransom, who went to the Gold Coast at pick 34, was the other Devil selected.
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