Demons champion retires 'with a very full heart'

1 year ago 34

Melbourne Demons champion Daisy Pearce has announced her retirement, leaving the crippled "with a afloat heart".

The 34-year-old retires having represented the Demons 55 times since the inaugural AFLW play successful 2017, kicking 25 goals successful the process. She led Melbourne to its archetypal premiership successful 2022, beating Brisbane successful the expansive final.

Pearce was named to 3 All-Australian teams, captaining the 2017 broadside earlier 2 much appearances successful 2018 and 2022. She was voted the AFLW's champion skipper connected 4 abstracted occasions.

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The erstwhile Darebin Falcons prima was Melbourne's inaugural AFLW signing and has been the look of the women's contention since its launch.

"I'll beryllium making my retirement, closing the section connected my playing vocation with a precise afloat heart," she said astatine a property league connected Wednesday morning.

"I consciousness similar it's the close decision, and came down to the information that I person the feeling of contentedness wrong me, which is simply a caller feeling for maine arsenic a shot player.

"As a young girl, I dreamed of having an accidental to play nonrecreational footy. It was a imagination that didn't look possible. So, to person pulled connected the reddish and bluish Melbourne jumper and to person been a portion of our archetypal AFLW premiership successful the archetypal play wherever each AFL nine had a women's squad representing it, and to cognize that this contention is lone getting bigger and better, is thing I cherish.

"I americium arrogant of however overmuch women's footy has grown, privileged to person been progressive successful an epoch wherever we tin admit wherever it's travel from and truthful excited that each young kid tin present imagination of a aboriginal successful our sport."

Pearce concisely stepped distant from playing erstwhile she gave commencement to twins successful February 2019, lone to instrumentality arsenic skipper for the 2020 season, wherever she remained 1 of the competition's astir prolific players.

Tributes instantly poured retired for Pearce, namely from Demons manager Mick Stinear and nine CEO Gary Pert, who some lauded the trailblazer for her lasting interaction connected the sport.

"Daisy has been the top power connected our women's program, creating, driving and inspiring our civilization and on-field success," Stinear said successful a nine statement.

"At the halfway of our civilization is our quality to beryllium the champion mentation of ourselves for the team, which takes hard enactment and a selfless approach, and we couldn't person asked for a amended relation exemplary successful Daisy."

"Daisy has been an exceptional leader, squad mate and player, and she volition permission an ever-lasting interaction connected our club," Pert added.

"She has provided exceptional leadership, some connected and disconnected the field, and has been integral to the improvement of not lone our AFLW program, but the contention arsenic a whole. She truly is the epitome of the Demon Spirit.

"To spot Daisy, alongside Mick, lifting our first-ever AFLW premiership cupful past twelvemonth was a infinitesimal we had each dreamed of – and 1 I'm definite we volition retrieve forever. For Daisy, it caps disconnected a singular travel and career.

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