BORN IN Busselton WA and raised mostly in Perth, Port Adelaide AFLW star and proud Yindjibarndi woman, Gemma Houghton didn’t grow up dreaming of playing Aussie rules footy, because the pathways simply did not exist. She had hopes of being a runner or a basketballer and figured her footy life would be limited to “taking speckys” with her brother down at their local park.
But an Instagram direct message from a friend of a friend asking if she’d be up for lacing up the boots for Freemantle in the AFLW’s inaugural season, would set her on a path which now nine years later, sees Gemma as a mainstay at the top of the women’s game.
‘Houghton takes it out of the ruck, goes for the impossible! Oh Gemma Houghton! A moment of individual brilliance!’
The Fox Footy commentators roar as Gemma kicks an incredible goal in Port Adelaide’s recent win against Collingwood. The camera pans to young fans with Port beanies and scarves and face paint, screaming in the crowd, then back to Gemma, with a beaming smile and a slight look of disbelief on her face as her ecstatic teammates embrace her.
Michael Willson
This highlight video is currently the top search result when you pop the 30 year old’s name in to Google and when she tells us in our recent catch up that she hopes she doesn’t seem her age as she’s out their moving on the pitch, it’s that moment which pops to mind. It’s clear as day that in Gemma’s 9th season in the women’s professional league, there’s no signs of slowing down.
A sign that is even more impressive when you weigh up the impact of the condensed 2024 AFLW season. With mid week games added to the fixture, in a move that saw critics raise questions about the safety of players, teams have played three games in a period of nine days. But Gemma says, for her Port Adelaide side, they’ve enjoyed the challenge,
“It’s been a little bit hectic. I only feel like last week [round 6 of the 10 week season], did we have a little bit of a break in between games. We were always conditioned for that. But the one thing you can’t be conditioned for is the physicality. In the first of the three games I had a massive cork in my leg and huge bruising all down the side. Which continued in to the second game a couple of days later and I even had a few people message me asking if I got a new tattoo on my leg, that’s how dark the bruises were! The legs were always a bit heavy in the first five minutes of each game, but we liked the challenge. It forced us to be more disciplined.”
In a sport bursting with fearless athletes, Gemma is as tough as they come. But she came into the 2024 season with less of a focus on that physical toughness in her game and more on prioritising the mental, wanting to play with confidence and self belief.
OVER HER YEARS at the top level, she’s learned that success as a professional athlete is not bound to the physical alone,
“Professional sport comes with a number of challenges. It’s not just the way you perform, it’s your mindset. For me, that’s something I’ve added slowly to my game. Making sure I have all areas of my life balanced. Balance is huge with me – whether that’s time with my family, my friends. My mindset and confidence and fitness all come together so I can be my best for the team.”
Gemma says understanding that she needed to prioritise getting her mindset right was something that was revealed with time. It’s work that Port Adelaide as a football club values too, with a mindset coach on staff to work with and support each of the playing group.
“Working with a mindset coach, visualisation, writing down goals – when you start doing that it can feel a little weird. You’ve got to be willing to work on yourself like that and it all stems from self confidence. So you first have to believe in yourself to perform at that level.”
Gemma speaks like a leader, and with her experience and longevity in the game it’s clear she understands the part she has to play as a role model to not only her younger teammates, but the next generation of aspiring AFLW stars too.
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THIS WEEKEND is the AFLW’s annual Indigenous Round. In 2024 the theme of the round is Spirit Strong, Game On – recognising the resilience and strength of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and Gemma’s Port Adelaide side will be known as Yartapuulti, which is the traditional Aboriginal name for Port Adelaide.
In the lead up to this event, which Gemma notes she is always honoured to play in as she is representing her family and culture, she also recognises the impact her presence in the game, can have on young Indigenous kids more broadly.
It was in fact, a famous Indigenous athlete who Gemma had watched on TV when she was just a kid, that she attributes some of the biggest impact on her life and career so far.
“When I was 13, I told my mum, I want to be a runner like Cathy Freeman. That’s all I wanted to do. And I know I’m in a different sport, but her impact on my life – when I hadn’t even met her – was huge. It pushed me and motivated me in a way that my family and friends couldn’t, because that’s the end prize. To be like her.”
The saying ‘you can’t be what you can’t see’ may be overused at times, but the direct correlation between Gemma watching Cathy Freeman’s famous Sydney 2000 gold medal win and seeing herself in that moment – in the flag draped over Cathy’s shoulders, in the success – unlocked the limitations of her dreams and aspirations. She knew in that moment, I can be like Cathy one day.
Sarah Reed
IN 2024, when young AFLW fans can see their favourite players run out in a Guernsey designed with Indigenous art and hear the stories of success from Indigenous players at the top of their game, they too can have their expectations of what they can be and what they can achieve blown wide open.
When it happens, Gemma can still barely believe its real, but as fans stop her to tell her about how much they love watching her play, she knows that dream of having an impact on someone like Cathy had on her, is becoming a reality.
“When I have people come up to me tell me ‘oh you’re my favourite player, can I have a photo with you?’ Even still now, I get taken back by it. Because I’m just a normal person who’s playing footy – to think there are people looking up to me…I’m no comparison to Cathy Freeman but if I can impact someone’s life the way she did to me and steer me into sport and the amazing opportunities sport brings you in life – it’s a crazy feeling.”
James Worsfold
The 2024 AFLW Indigenous Round takes place across Week 9 and 10 of the NAB AFLW Season, starting Thursday, 24 October – Sunday, 3 November. Tickets are only $15 with kids under 18 free.
