‘Hannah Priest is a beast!’ The poster and handwritten note that changed Saints captain’s finals mindset

3 hours ago 2

When the siren blared after St Kilda’s 45-point loss to the Western Bulldogs last week, skipper Hannah Priest trudged off the field, head bowed in disappointment.

The injury-plagued Saints had already secured a place in the top eight– their maiden AFLW finals appearance – but Sunday’s defeat meant they’d blown an opportunity to guarantee a home final.

St Kilda AFLW Captain Hannah Priest is ready for the club’s maiden finals

Priest was almost at the boundary line when something caught her attention. A young girl was holding a giant red, black and white poster with the words, “Hannah Priest is a beast”. She reached out and gave the Saints captain a handwritten note scribbled on a yellow piece of paper with red hearts.

“Her name was also Hannah and she gave me a note saying that I was her role model and she wanted to play footy like me when she grows up,” Priest told this masthead.

A fan note given to AFLW player Hannah Priest.

“It was a really tough game, and I was so disappointed with our team’s performance. Receiving that note definitely reminded me of what it’s all about.”

On Sunday, Priest will lead St Kilda into their first elimination final against Adelaide, an opportunity the club has been waiting for since their entry into AFLW in 2020.

Priest has been a pivotal part of that journey – the 33-year-old was the first Saint to reach the 50-game milestone and has been captain for six seasons.

“I’ve played every game for the club since our inception, so I’ve enjoyed that journey and the highs and the lows,” she said. “But this is exactly what I wanted to do, get our club and our team to a competitive level.

“This year, more than ever, it’s taken all of us to get to this point and I’m just incredibly proud of the group, not just this year, but the years that have come before as well.”

St Kilda have been badly plagued by injuries this season, with eight players currently sidelined, including Nicola Xenos and Bianca Jakobsson. However, the team has still managed some extraordinary victories.

In round seven the Saints overcame the biggest three-quarter-time margin in AFLW history, with an epic last-quarter comeback against Port Adelaide.

Jesse Wardlaw kicked three last-quarter goals and Priest overcame a broken nose to finish out the game and win by 11 points.

Could the team’s remarkable fourth-quarter resurgence be attributed to a brilliant speech from their skipper?

“Not at all,” Priest laughed. “I would love to say that I made an incredibly inspiring three-quarter-time speech in that game, but it was just getting the girls focused on getting our contest principles right and making sure that we’re really playing our brand of football.”

Hannah Priest overcame a broken nose to lead her side to a record victory over Port Adelaide.

“I don’t think there was one person in that huddle [who] didn’t believe that we couldn’t get the job done, which just says a lot about the character and the belief of our list,” she continued.

Despite St Kilda’s injury list, Priest believes the group’s resilience can propel them forward for Sunday’s game against the Crows in Adelaide.

“Of course, we would have preferred a home final, just so we could have more of our Saints fans present,” Priest admitted. “But maybe this is what was scripted for us. It’ll keep us together.

“We’re going to take every one of our girls to Adelaide this weekend … because it’s taken all of us to get to where we are today, and it’s going to take all of us to go far into finals.”

Priest has fulfilled many roles during her tenure as captain, including mentor to the younger players, emphasising the importance of building other leaders.

“I found this year, more than ever, I’ve delegated a lot of the role to empowering our young leaders and being a cheerleader for them,” she said. “Them knowing that I’m in their corner and for them to find their own leadership, voice and commitment to the team.”

However, her role as team hairstylist has evolved. Priest’s pre-game ritual used to involve braiding her teammates’ hair and checking in with them before the match.

“There are not a lot of braids going around because it’s more of a slick back kind of look at the moment,” Priest said. “But I did do a couple of braids on an away trip this year, it’s just part of the duties required as captain.”

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