Western Bulldogs winger Rylie Wilcox says she never thought she’d make it as an AFLW player.

Joining teammates Jas Smith and Mua Laloifi on Episode 4 of The Barking Bulldogs, Wilcox shared how self-doubt nearly deterred her from pursuing footy.

“I always had the mindset that I was too small so didn’t see the point (in pursuing it),” Wilcox said.

“I was even tinier than I am now – with barely any muscle. I was just skin and bone, and short.

“It was kind of a bad mindset now that I think about it. There was just no belief deep down, but the coaches saw potential in me.

“In 2019, I got asked to play for Vic Metro and turned that down. I didn’t rock up to the first trials but still made it through.

“I think they were just trying to get me – I was crying to Mum saying I didn’t want to do it.

“Coates League came around next and I got selected for that, and Mum was like ‘just do it Rylie, you never know”.

Coming from a hockey and soccer background, Wilcox said once she finally gave footy a crack, she fell in love with it. 

“I played Nationals for hockey...I went through the ranks there and really enjoyed it, but it just became too much at one point,” Wilcox said.

“I really loved footy, but I was a skinny little girl and my Mum was just a bit unsure about it. I was quite scared of the physical contact too.

“I got to a training session (at Parkside) and just loved it so much.

“I actually didn’t want to get drafted – hockey was so mentally taxing in a way with all of the Vic stuff...I was training three nights a week after school from Year 6 to Year 9, travelling to New South Wales to compete for 12 days and play back-to-back games.

“It was cooked - footy was (an outlet) – I just wanted to play for a club. I didn’t even know about AFLW.”

Wilcox said while her self-belief has come a long way since her junior days, it’s still a work in progress.

“To be honest I’m still working on it. I struggled to see (the potential others saw),” she said.

“Hearing from others that I was good enough and deserved to be out there – it was very comforting.”

Hosted by Mua Laloifi and Jas Smith, 'The Barking Bulldogs' takes you inside Mission Whitten Oval to give you an exclusive look at life behind the scenes of the AFLW program. Tune in fortnightly via your preferred podcast listening service.