By Ant Wingard
One of Aspley’s most promising young female footballers will reach an unprecedented milestone when she runs out this weekend.
Ashlan Wakelin will play her 150th game in the brown and gold this weekend in the Hornets’ Under 12 Division 3 showdown against Victoria Point on Sunday.
The milestone is already significant in its volume of games but Wakelin’s latest achievement is perhaps even more incredible given she is just 11-year-old and the speed in which she has chalked up a century and a half of games.
Taking up the sport as at the age of four in 2012, Wakelin has frequently played in both boys and girls age groups as she rises through the junior and youth ranks, rapidly developing into a dependable and eager hard worker on field.
In 2019 already, the footy-mad Wakelin has played for six different teams in Aspley’s junior ranks including three youth boys teams and three youth girls teams.
Wakelin’s love for the sport, where she has also earned selection in the Metropolitan North team for the 2019 School Sport State Championships, is not bound by on-field success noting the team-first approach and making friends as a positive.
“I love being able to tackle and improve my skills as well as being apart of a team,” she told Quest Community News.
“I enjoy helping teammates improve and learn the game and how many friends I make through footy.”
Wakelin’s busy footballing schedule, which often means playing two games per weekend and duties with the Under 14 girls inner north Brisbane North squad, also entails volunteering at the club and helping out other junior Hornet teams to make sure more girls have access to the sport.
At the Hornets, Wakelin hopes to follow in the footsteps of former Aspley product Tayla Harris and continue progress through the ranks and one day, like Harris, ply her trade at the AFLW level.
Wakelin will play her 150th McDonald’s AFL Brisbane Juniors match this weekend when the Hornets face the Sharks at Voxson Oval this Sunday, July 14, at 11:30am.
From everyone at AFL Queensland, well done Ashlan!
