The Adelaide Football Club has signed a second Olympian to its AFL Women’s team, with beach volleyball player Becchara Palmer committing for the 2018 competition.
Born in Adelaide, Palmer represented Australia at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London and has also claimed the honour of Australian Beach Volleyball Champion six times.
The 28-year-old Junior World Champion recently stepped away from professional volleyball after more than a decade of international competition.
Palmer, who attended Henley High School and currently works in digital marketing, has been signed as a rookie because she has not participated in football competitively for the last three years.
She becomes the second Olympian at the Crows, joining inaugural AFLW Best and Fairest Erin Phillips.
Crows General Manager Football Administration Phil Harper said the Club was thrilled to sign Palmer for the second season of the AFLW.
“Becchara is an explosive athlete who has years of experience competing at the highest level, so she is sure to be a great asset to our team both on and off the field,” Harper said.
“To represent Australia at an Olympics requires a huge amount of mental and physical toughness so we know that Becchara will help to continue to drive elite standards at the Club.”
Palmer said she was excited about the opportunity.
“Growing up I was always playing or watching sport – including attending Crows games at Football Park with dad – so to be able to join the Club and have a go at playing football professionally is really such an honour,” Palmer said.
“I watched the first season of the AFLW with great interest. While it’s going to take a lot of hard work to successfully transition from volleyball to football, I think my base fitness and the experience I have in preparing for sporting campaigns will go a long way.”
In 2018, AFLW squads will be extended to 30 which includes 27 senior-listed players and three rookies.
Rookies must either be under 21 years of age on January 1, 2018, or not have played Australian Football or been part of an AFL high performance program in the three years prior to May 1, 2017.
The Adelaide Football Club has secured 20 members of its history-making AFLW premiership team for the 2018 season including co-captains Erin Phillips and Chelsea Randall.
They are joined by South-Australian based teammates Sarah Perkins, Courtney Cramey, Ebony Marinoff Jenna McCormick, Talia Radan, Anne Hatchard, Dayna Cox, Jess Sedunary, Justine Mules, Rhiannon Metcalfe, Rachael Killian, Deni Varnhagen, Georgia Bevan and Sarah Allan.
Northern Territory players Abbey Holmes, Stevie-Lee Thompson and joint-vice captains Ange Foley and Sally Riley have also inked new deals with the Club.
Becchara Palmer
2007-2017: Australian Institute of Sport/Volleyball Australia Scholarship Holder
2006: Junior World Champion, Bermuda
2007: Junior World Championships Silver Medal, Italy
2007: Inaugural Member of Henley High School’s Sports Hall of Fame
2009: FIVB Mazury Open, Poland, 2nd Place & Awarded Most Valuable Player
2009: FIVB Kristiansand Open, Norway – 5th Place
2009: Top 5 setters in the world awarded at the FIVB End of Season Awards
2009 & 2010: South Australian Sports Institute (SASI) Female Athlete of the Year
2010: Finalist in the Advertiser/Channel 7 Sports Star of the Year Awards
2011: FIVB Phuket Open – Semi Finalists
2011/12: Consistent World Ranking in the top 15
2012: Gold Medalist Oceania Championships, New Zealand
2012: London Olympian
2015: Australian Indoor Volleyball Team World Grand Prix, Algeria/Kazakstan/Canberra
2016: Rio Olympics - Reserve Team
2008-2017: 6 x Australian Beach Volleyball Champion
