Issue 51 Aurora Magazine October 2022

More documents

Info

spotlight EMMA DELLAR REPRESENTS Brains and Brawn STORY SERENA KIRBY | PHOTO SERENA KIRBY When we think of women’s sport, American Football is probably not the first one that springs to mind. But it’s certainly top of mind for Kentdale local Emma Dellar. Emma is one of those gutsy women who puts her body on the line every time she pads up and steps onto the field to play what is known in Australia as gridiron. She’s also darn good at it. Emma recently travelled to Finland as part of the Australian women’s team competing in the <strong>2022</strong> International Federation of American Football Women’s World Championships. Even though our Aussie team didn’t collect the trophy, they did achieve a first-time win against seasoned competitors, Sweden, in what is called a “donut”; a zero score for the Swedish team. “Sure, it would’ve been good to have got into the finals but simply being there and playing at that level is incredibly rewarding,” Emma says. But Emma is no newbie to sport at an elite level as she’s travelled much of the world in her previous sport -– BMX racing – and represented Australia seven times. “I grew up in Karratha and Tom Price and there wasn’t much to do so sport was a way of filling the after school hours. My whole family was into one sport or another and I was introduced to BMX by my sister and started racing when I was 14 years old. When we were older she and I travelled and competed together and it was a great way to spend time with each other.” After years of racing BMX, Emma chose to park her bike and switch sports. She took up the winter sport of Gaelic football then went in search of a summer sport. A fellow teammate suggested women’s gridiron which led Emma to be selected for the Curtin Saints, before going on to play for the Perth Broncos in the position of linebacker. This position suited Emma perfectly as it’s just as much about brain as it is about brawn. “Linebacker is an important defensive position. I need to work out what the other team is going to do next. They try to trick you into thinking they’re going to do one thing while actually setting themselves up to do something totally different. It’s both a technical and highly physical position. As the name implies, you’re right behind the centre line of play and strategy and strength are key. I see it as a combination of mixed martial arts and chess.” With Emma definitely being a bit of a brainiac it’s easy to see why she’s perfect as a linebacker. She excelled at school which led her to participate in the GATE (gifted and talented education) program. University followed and with a love of rocks fostered by her early years in the Pilbara and an interest in science, she went on to study geophysics. “I knew I wanted to study something in the science field but didn’t know there was such a thing as geophysics until I saw it in the uni’s course brochure. Not many people were studying this back in 2004 and I was the only female in the class to graduate.” 12 LOVE LOCAL
spotlight OPPOSITE: Emma gears up on her property at Kentdale. ABOVE: Emma running onto the field for the World Championships in Finland this year. After spending 15 years with Rio Tinto, Emma now works for Fortescue in the role of principal geophysicist. “I work in the niche field of ‘down-hole geophysics’. I analyse and interpret the data from rock samples. It’s the perfect match for me as I’m definitely a data nerd,” Emma adds with a chuckle. Having moved to a beautiful bush block in Kentdale (halfway between Denmark and Walpole) a year ago, Emma now works remotely while buzzing up to Perth several days a month to do some face-to-face time at the company’s head office. This also gives her a chance to do gridiron training with the Broncos team and check in with her trainer and coach. “Working remotely is pretty easy and it’s more accepted by employers since Covid. We moved down here for the lifestyle and environment and as an idyllic place to raise our son. I train amongst the trees and in my home gym and my work desk is just a few steps away. Who can complain about that? Not me.” With the next women’s gridiron World Championships not held until 2025, Emma is unsure if she’ll try to make the team again. She’s still passionate about the sport and is now keen to form an alumni of players to help fundraise and gain grants to help the game become accessible to all. “Finance should not be a prohibitor to participation. All sports should be accessible to those that want to play them. I’d like to see more women play gridiron. As females we aren’t taught to enjoy and explore the physicality of our bodies.” Emma adds that, even if you don’t consider yourself an athlete, you can still play gridiron as there are actually positions on the team where you don’t move. Of course, you may find it hard to fight the urge to turn and run when a six foot, 120kg woman is hurtling towards you. You can find out more about women’s gridiron at www.gridironwest.com.au LOVE LOCAL 13
Page 1 and 2: FREE Aurora Issue 51 GREAT SOUTHERN
Page 3 and 4: contents 4 CULTIVATE KEEP ALBANY BE
Page 5 and 6: cultivate The number of guests each
Page 7 and 8: cultivate Many of the threatened sp
Page 9 and 10: ALBANY FARMERS MARKET Spring at the
Page 11: taste super-hot chillies he sources
Page 15 and 16: create Linda was a stand out in art
Page 17 and 18: vogue ELECTION arrivals from our lo
Page 19 and 20: vogue LEFT, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT
Page 21 and 22: eflect France, as the men had expec
Page 23 and 24: educate I’m a qualified teacher n
Page 25 and 26: promote That role involved developi
Page 27 and 28: engage artwork will include the tap
Page 29 and 30: what's on Legacy Legacy is a hopefu
Page 31 and 32: gig guide Everything we put in the

Issue 51 Aurora Magazine October 2022

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?