For 11-year-old Matilda and 7-year-old Katelyn Taylor, a visit to the Crows AFLW training was a welcome surprise after a few tough months.

The Taylor family’s property at Lobethal, which formerly ran as Fairyland Village, was completely burnt out by the Cudlee Creek bushfire.

The two houses on the property were saved by the MFS but all other buildings, shed and trucks were destroyed.

Unfortunately, most of their possessions were stored in the shed, not the house, including Matilda’s beloved football.

Dad Josh said while the bushfires were almost three months ago, the family is still dealing with the fall out.

“The hard parts were little things like Matilda realising her footy was gone,” Josh said.

“I think she thought ‘we should head down to the oval to kick the footy’ and that was when the penny dropped.

“That made her really upset and realise it was all real.”

“We contacted the club and hoped to get a new one signed by the players, but what happened was so much better, it makes it that much more special for them.”

The family were invited to watch the entire training session at West Lakes and were made to feel welcome by the AFLW team, who posed for photos and chatted to the family.

Both Matilda and Katelyn went home with a football each and memories which will stay with them for a lifetime.

The girls were also invited to be part of the game day Guard of Honour for the Crows round six clash against the GWS Giants, however they will now wait until the 2021 season to take up this opportunity.

“It means so much, it was such a privilege to come down and do something special like this,” Josh said.

“It was a big part of the healing process I think, and it puts a positive spin on what has been a pretty rough couple of months.”

This opportunity was made possible thanks to the Adelaide Crows Foundation.