Persistence & hard work pay off for Cambridge

With pick 84 in the 2022 NAB AFLW Draft, the GWS GIANTS have selected former Port Macquarie Magpie Cambridge McCormick.

Familiar with the AFLW environment, the 23-year-old was a train on with the Brisbane Lions during the inaugural season in 2017. In 2019, whilst still with Port Magpies Cambridge took part in the QW Winter Series, playing for the Gold Coast Suns against the Brisbane Lions.

It’s taken Cambridge six years on the periphery to finally become an AFLW listed player and it’s an absolute credit to the persistence and focus she’s shown to continually develop her game to the point where she could no longer be ignored.

Originally from Queensland, McCormick has spent the past two seasons playing in the AFL Canberra Women’s competition with the Eastlake Demons. In between was a spell in Port Macquarie where Cambridge was studying to become a physiotherapist, and it was employment in this field that took her to Canberra.

Whilst in Port, Cambridge was involved in the Women’s demonstration matches in 2017 that led to the formation of the competition the next season, and was an inaugural member of the Port Macquarie Magpies team in 2018. She won the League Best and Fairest Medal in both 2018 and 2019, as well as the award for Best on Ground in the Grand Finals of the same years, the first of which was in a losing team!

Cameron Bernasconi, GWS GIANTS Senior AFLW Coach, said “As always, we focus on and track talent across the NSW and ACT leagues. As we knew we needed to add rucks to our list, we identified Cambridge as the best ruck in those leagues. She has good follow up as ruck, playing as an extra midfielder and has good skills for her size.”

Cambridge McCormick
Drafted from: Eastlake Demons, ACT
Height: 180cm
Position: Ruck
D.O.B.: 29/11/98