Sophie Locke knows a thing or two about creating a new team culture.
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As captain of Seymour's first youth girls football team in 2019, Locke was at ground zero from the beginning.
Now Locke, 20, has the chance to do it all again, signing with Port Melbourne’s inaugural VFL Women’s team.
With another chance to write herself into the history books, Locke is looking forward to the day her team earns its first win, just like when her beloved Lions first triumphed.
“To play that first round (with the Lions) and to get the win, it was the most exciting thing ever,” Locke said.
“I hope the girls here have that same sort of experience. It’s the best feeling.”
Locke was set to play in the VFL Women’s competition last year with another famous club — Richmond Football Club — but the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting lockdowns threw a spanner into the works, with the season cancelled before it even started.
Then in August, Locke was informed the Tigers would not be moving forward with a VFLW team in 2021.
Looking her options, Locke later received a call from the Tigers notifying her of the club’s new affiliation with Port Melbourne’s VFLW team.
A call from the Borough’s women’s coach Lachlan Harris to ask Locke if she was interested in training at North Port Oval sealed the deal.
Now in her first pre-season at the Borough, Locke said she was loving every minute of her time at the standalone club.
“It’s different to Richmond, who is pretty focused on its AFLW team,” Locke said.
“At Port Melbourne, we are the coaches’ focus, so there is so much support at training.
“It’s been a really cruisy transfer across.”
Having not played a competitive game since 2019, when she was a member of the Murray Bushrangers’ program, Locke admits the COVID-19 pandemic has been frustrating.
But it was by leaning on her home club that Locke has also been able to keep in touch throughout the lay-off.
First there was her youth girls’ coach — and father — Stuart Locke, as well as younger sister Chloe, a footballer in her own right.
“I’m very fortunate Dad is the coach of our local football team. He was able to keep Chloe and I active and fit and doing things,” Locke said.
“We didn’t have gyms, so Dad would get the footy and drag us down to the oval to exercise. We call him the Energiser Bunny.
“It was a really good thing for me.”
Then there was Locke’s other connections at the Den, as she set out to join the senior men’s training sessions between the first and second lockdown.
“The local boys have been very accommodating with me training with them,” Locke said.
“Their coach, Ben Davey, was really good and would let me know if they would start a drill with more contact, and I was totally fine to sit out.
“But just having their coaching and the boys there to help me keep touching the football, and help with my fitness, I was really fortunate.”
Now with a return to competitive football in sight for Locke, she is champing at the bit to get back on the field.
Even as other challenges continue to arise.
An injury to her calf, which Locke strained near the end of a training session with Port Melbourne last month, sidelined her for nearly three weeks.
After missing the team’s intraclub match, Locke was set to play in the Borough’s first practice match against Geelong last weekend, but it was cancelled due to the current state-wide lockdown.
“I’m just keen,” Locke said ahead of playing her first game in the Borough’s famous blue and red jumper.
And when the time comes for Locke and her teammates to first test themselves in a game scenario, Locke said they would channel coach Harris’ mantra to “stir the pot”.
“We want to come out firing and figure out what standard we are at — a lot of girls haven’t played a VFLW game yet,” Locke said.
“A lot of the VFLW teams have been in the system a while, but we want to surprise our opposition — we’re an unknown team, no-one has seen us — so we hope the opposition will come in underestimating us, and that we can make our own legacy and history as a new team.”
As for her own ambitions this year, Locke said she wanted to get back to playing consistent football.
“I have been training with the backline, but players are getting chucked anywhere so coaches can see where they best fit. I’m happy to play anywhere, as long as I'm on the field,” she said.
“I just want to get back playing footy, play as many games as possible at Port Melbourne, injury-free.
“I’m excited to be a part of it all.”
Sports journalist