Abbie Ballard
Height: 160cm
DOB: 16/4/2002
Recruited from: West Adelaide Football Club
Position: Midfield/Forward
A balanced midfielder/small forward with good skills on either side of her body.
The tough left-footer was selected to represent South Australia at the Under-19 AFLW Championships this year but suffered a syndesmosis injury in a pre-season trial game for West Adelaide and spent three months on the sidelines.
The Bloods vice-captain returned in the latter part of the SANFLW season and stood in as captain in the club’s Grand Final loss to Glenelg.
Ballard finished equal-fifth in the 2020 SANFLW Best and Fairest award, which was won by her new Crows teammates Anne Hatchard and Rachelle Martin.
Ballard also won West Adelaide’s Best and Fairest award in 2019.
The teenager from Coomandook impressed as a train-on player with the Crows in the lead-up to the 2021 AFLW season.
Crows Head of Women's Football Phil Harper said:
“Abbie has been a very consistent player in the SANFLW for a few years.
Unfortunately, because of COVID-19 and then injury, Abbie missed out on playing for South Australia at the Under-19 AFLW Championships but fortunately we were able to watch her up close as a train-on player last pre-season.
Abbie is a natural footballer. She is very clean with the ball and can kick with both feet.
Abbie travelled two hours each way from Coomandook to Adelaide three times a week to train and play with West Adelaide, so she loves her footy!
We can’t wait to see how Abbie develops in an AFLW environment.”
