Tayla Thorn facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Tayla Thorn |
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Thorn playing for Southern Districts in November 2019
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| Personal information | |||
| Nickname(s) | Thorny | ||
| Date of birth | 31 May 1998 | ||
| Place of birth | Darwin, Northern Territory | ||
| Original team | Southern District (NTFL) | ||
| Draft | No. 90, 2016 AFL Women's draft | ||
| Debut | Round 1, 2017, Adelaide v. Greater Western Sydney, at Thebarton Oval |
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| Position(s) | Utility | ||
| Career highlights | |||
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Junior
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Tayla Thorn, born on May 31, 1998, is an Australian rules footballer. She played in the AFL Women's (AFLW) league. Tayla was part of the teams for Adelaide and Gold Coast.
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Tayla Thorn's Early Life and Football Beginnings
Tayla Thorn was born in Darwin, which is in the Northern Territory. Her family is of Indigenous Australian descent, specifically from the Iwaidja group. She grew up in a small town called Humpty Doo. There, she played football with her cousin, Nakia Cockatoo, and other friends.
Junior Achievements in Football
Tayla was the captain of the very first Indigenous Northern Territory representative team. She also won a "best and fairest" award at her local club, St Mary's. In September 2016, Tayla was one of only two players from the Northern Territory chosen for a special women's all-star exhibition match. She played for Melbourne in that game. In the same year, she was named in the Youth Girls All-Stars Team. This showed she was one of the best young players.
Tayla Thorn's AFL Women's Career
Tayla Thorn had a career playing in the AFL Women's league. She played for two different teams during her time in the league.
Playing for Adelaide Crows
Tayla was chosen by the Adelaide Crows in the 2016 AFL Women's draft. She was their twelfth pick. Before this, Tayla had moved to Melbourne to study accounting. She then returned to the Top End to join the group of Adelaide players from Darwin. Tayla was the youngest player on the Crows' first-ever AFLW team.
Tayla's Debut and Key Games
Tayla made her first appearance in the club's very first match. This was in Round 1 of the 2017 season against Greater Western Sydney. In her first game, she played in the ruck and defence positions. In Round 2, she impressed her club by effectively "tagging" a star player, Katie Brennan, from the Western Bulldogs. Tagging means closely guarding an opponent to stop them from getting the ball.
Tayla missed Round 5 but returned in Round 6. She played against Melbourne in front of her home crowd at TIO Stadium in Darwin. Even though she missed two games, Tayla was one of the top tacklers in the league. After the 2017 season, she was not re-signed by the Adelaide Crows.
Playing for Gold Coast Suns
In August 2019, Tayla signed with a new team, the Gold Coast Suns. This team was joining the AFLW as an expansion team. After playing for the Suns, she was delisted at the end of the season. This means she was no longer part of the team.
Tayla Thorn's Personal Life
Tayla Thorn comes from a large family. She has seventeen sisters. Tayla was featured in a special documentary called League of Her Own. This show was broadcast across Australia by the Seven Network. As of March 2017, Tayla worked as an administrator for AFL Northern Territory. She worked at the Michael Long Learning and Leadership Centre. This centre is a big sports facility where the Crows team trains in Darwin. It is also an important educational place for indigenous Australians.
