CORA STAUNTON WILL play her 50th Australian Football League Women’s [AFLW] game this weekend — though is still undecided on whether she will play on in 2023.
40-year-old Staunton, the first international player signed to an AFLW list in 2017, will hit the significant milestone against Gold Coast on Sunday in the final round of the regular season.
The Mayo great is set to return to these shores thereafter to weigh up the prospect of playing a seventh season Down Under.
With her club, Carnacon, finished up for the season after their Mayo semi-final exit and her Green and Red career parked, Staunton will have time on her side to consider her decision.
“I don’t like any of that attention,” Staunton told the club’s website when asked about her future. “I normally assess at the end of the season, see where I’m at.
“I probably need to go home because you’re in a little bit of a bubble here and it’s very hard to make a decision. This is the first time when I’ve gone home we don’t have a Gaelic football season, we’re in winter at home, there’s no football to go home to.
“It’s nice to go home and rest up, I probably haven’t done that in a long time. I’m looking forward to that and the decision will come on the back of that.”
Staunton has enjoyed a glittering AFLW career since making the move in ’17, and currently sits third on the all-time AFLW goalkickers list with 54, just trailing superstar duo Tayla Harris (57) and Darcy Vescio (55).
She’s since been joined by Cork legend Bríd Stack at GWS, and reflects fondly on her time and unprecedented success at the club.
“I thought I was going to be here for one season, to be honest. Even on the plane on the way over to Australia for my first season I was thinking ‘this is a one-year thing’.
💬 "On the plane on the way over to Australia for my first season I was thinking this is a one-year thing."
— GWS GIANTS (@GWSGIANTS) October 26, 2022
Five years after arriving at the GIANTS, @duckie15 will run out for her 50th consecutive AFLW game this weekend 👏 #BigBigSound
“I’ve surprised myself I’ve lasted this long, It’s a very physical game. It’s tough on your body.
“When I came over here first, God did I even think I’d play five or 10 games? Probably not, but the years have flown by.”
“When I came over in 2017 I was one of the top players from a Gaelic football sense and you come to AFL and you’re at the bottom of the ladder,” the multi-talented sportswoman, four-time All-Ireland winner and 11-time All-Star added.
“I was right down at (number) 30 in the GIANTS squad and way further down in the League. You want to try and challenge yourself to get better. You just become really competitive.
“Then you fall in love with the club … become really passionate about it and want to see the team succeed.
“I’m at an age now where it’s not about individual awards, I just want to see the team do well and the club do really well and get to finals and be recognised for all the hard work they put in.”
