The Falcons have named their leaders for both boys and girls programs for 2025.
AFL Academy member Newtown & Chilwell’s Josh Lindsay and Ocean Grove’s Ben Coote will take the reins as co-captains of the boys squad, with Jesse Mellor, Hugo Mikunda and Hamish McGowan in the leadership group.
St Joseph’s Georgia Tyrell will lead the girls squad, with Alana Mulvahil, Stella Huxtable, Cavalle Boxer, Ava Bilyk and Jayde Morrissy all taking leadership roles.
Falcons talent lead Jesse Drever says they were excited to lock down the club’s leaders as the season approaches.
“We’ve got two fantastic leaders in the boys’ space,” he said.
“They’re also two very different players. Ben’s more of a verbal influence on his team and uses his voice well around the group, while Josh is the ultimate professional and leads by example.
“Georgia Tyrell has been a leader in our program since she was 15 or 16, and we probably knew back then she was going to lead this group one day.
“Her empathy is something that really stands out too; she drives high standards, but she also knows how to relate to her teammates, so it was a unanimous vote.”
The announcement of the Falcons’ leaders has usually been closer to the respective team’s opening-round matches.
“We probably did it a bit earlier than normal this year,” Drever said.
“But given we have smaller lists going into the pre-season, we wanted to lock them in so the groups could start getting used to each other.
“Looking at an underage program, dealing with Year 12s who have a high expectation from a footy perspective, we have these leaders from that football perspective, but we value who they are as people as well.”
The Paul Corrigan-coached Falcons Boys start their campaign against Vic County rivals Dandenong Stingrays this Sunday at Trevor Barker Beach Oval in Sandringham.
The Falcons Girls, who will be led in 2025 by Tash Heffernan while Mel Hickey is on maternity leave, face the GWV Rebels in Ballarat on April 5.
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