Student Achievement : Representative Football

Talented sisters playing high-level footy

The Hargreaves sisters, Zoe (Year 12)  and Phoebe (Year 11), have both been taking great strides on their footy journeys. 

Zoe and Phoebe both play at the Northern Knights in the Coates Talent League (Victoria’s top competition for under 18 girls), with Phoebe also a part of the team’s developing leadership group. In addition to regular games with the Northern Knights throughout 2024, Zoe has also been selected to play in several other high-level teams and representative sides. She has featured twice for different All Stars teams playing against the AFLW academy, as well as getting an opportunity to play with Carlton’s VFLW side. 

I’ve really enjoyed playing with the Northern Knights and Vic Metro. Not only has it helped me to further develop my footy skills, but also given me the opportunity to make lots of new friends through these fantastic (AFL funded) programs. There have been some stressful times trying to balance my footy commitments and my Year 12 studies, but the footy is a great outlet and has helped me develop good resilience and time management skills. Overall, it’s been a super fun experience that I’m very grateful for and I can’t wait to get into the rest of the season!  ~Zoe

Recently, both Zoe and Phoebe were selected in the Vic Metro Under 18 squad to compete in the National Championships, Zoe in the main squad and Phoebe as a bottom aged “train on” player. Zoe played her first game in Sydney against the Allies (Tasmania/ACT/NSW/NT)) and recently played her second game at Marvel Stadium against Vic Country, with the Vic Metro girls comfortably winning both games. Zoe’s final National Championships game is against South Australia here in Melbourne during August.  The girls’ footy with the Northern Knights and Vic Metro has seen them visit several parts of Australia for matches, including Brisbane and Sydney, as well as much of regional Victoria including Bendigo, Ballarat, Morwell and Wangaratta. 

I’ve had such a good experience so far playing with the Northern Knights as well as training with the Vic Metro squad. Training in the Vic Metro squad has been a really good opportunity for me to develop my skills and compete amongst some of the best players in the state, many of who will be drafted into the AFLW at the end of this year. Footy has not only developed my skills but also myself as a person. I’ve made so many different friendships and met so many people along the way. I’m super excited for the remainder of the season! ~ Phoebe

As the AFLW draft at the end of the year comes into focus, Zoe is already meeting with a number of clubs, so we are excited to see where her footy journey leads to next. Watch this space!