ONE of the most recognisable figures in this year’s AFL Women’s Draft, Gippsland Power’s Ash Centra is a name most, if not all draft followers are well aware of. Having come through the Power’s program the last few years, she has continued to excel, and dominated last season to win Vic Country’s MVP as a bottom-ager and produced some eye-catching efforts in 2024.

The potential pick one contender has looked at coming out of her shell more in 2024, with leadership being a key focus at the start of the year. When asked what her goals were entering her top-age season during the Coates Talent League Girls Preseason Testing event, Centra honed in on becoming a better leader as well as player.

“Becoming a better leader is something I want to learn and get more familiar with, and then I think just excelling my footy,” Centra said.

The ultimate utility, Centra could play on any one of three lines, having started as an Under 16s talent up forward, then went back last year, and has now settled as a midfielder/forward, where she played for both the Power and Vic Country.

“I think last year considering I played on all three fields, I think back was definitely a dominant for me,” she said of where she played her best footy in 2023. “But I think I play my best footy in the midfield.”

Centra’s journey started by following her twin brother into the sport, and from there continued to get better and better to the point of where she was impossible to miss on the football field.

“My twin brother had a massive influence on me when I was little because he always got me out kicking the footy with him and just played Under 10s with him, Under 12s, Under 14s and then girls couldn’t play with boys anymore so then I went and played a women’s comp and excelled from there,” Centra said.

“I think just getting the opportunities that we got given was something that I’ll never forget.”

Centra was named in the AFLW Academy and has learnt plenty from her time both there and for Vic Country, identifying nutrition and recovery techniques as focal points that have helped improve her football.

An unique individual, Centra barracks for Essendon in the AFL men’s competition, while supporting Gold Coast in the women’s. Her love for the red and black is two-fold with the Power player a massive fan of Sam Draper, while also being influenced by her family who are all “mad Essendon” fans. As for her support of Gold Coast, it was “just random”.

Centra does not mind providing a point of difference out of the field, going at her own pace and enjoying her footy. Last year she and eventual Carlton draftee Lila Keck enjoyed a memorable goal celebration which came about during the national championships. The top-ager provided an insight into how that came about.

“Obviously she’s the queen of doing celebrations so I said ‘let’s figure something out and we can incorporate one’ and then we had training I think in Essendon and she must have got a goal or I must have got a goal, and we just started doing handshakes and it just went on from there,” Centra said.

The top draft prospect has two idols she moulds her game around, basing her midfield craft on Monique Conti, and her forward craft on Chloe Molloy. Both stars in their own zones, Centra has the potential to dominate in both areas like they do. When asked about her strengths and improvements, the humble star was direct about her game.

“My areas of my improvement are definitely my physicality and my endurance, I need to work on that too,” Centra said. “Then I think my strengths are that I’m a bit versatile so I can play as a utility and play anywhere the coaches want me, and I think just kicking and my footy IQ.”

With news that the AFLW Draft will become full national in 2024, no doubt non-Victorian clubs would be rubbing their hands at the prospect of bringing in a player of Centra’s ilk. However even if the draft did not become national, Centra admitted preseason she was always going to nomination nationally, and if anything was looking forward to going “somewhere warmer”.

“I’m definitely going to choose interstate (national), but I haven’t really looked too far ahead, just hopefully just get drafted as the number one priority,” she said.

Ever the humble talent, Centra will not have to wait long to hear her name called in December. But first, she will finish off her year for Gippsland Power, and then head to the AFLW Draft Combine.