Nicole Campbell joins SANFLW 50 Club

By ZAC MILBANK

South Adelaide’s Nicole Campbell always dreamed about playing Australian Football.

Not only has it become a reality, the durable midfielder is suddenly on the verge of reaching her 50th Hostplus SANFLW League game when the Panthers host the Eagles at Flinders University Stadium on Saturday.

Speaking on SANFL Radio, the 28-year-old said she originally pursued soccer, thinking there was no pathway for girls to play footy.

Campbell has since crammed plenty into her new sporting pursuit, which began with Norwood in 2018.

After playing every game with the Redlegs in her debut campaign, Campbell joined South chiefly to be closer to home whilst cutting travel time.

In her first season with the Panthers in 2019, the left-footer played in a SANFLW premiership and was named in The Advertiser SANFLW Team of the Year.

It resulted in her being selected by Adelaide in the AFLW, where she played five games for the Crows in 2020.

While she only spent one season on the list at West Lakes, Campbell feels she is a much better leader as a result of her experience whilst holding hope of being thrown another AFLW lifeline with the introduction of four new clubs, including Port Adelaide, next season.

Campbell will be the second Panther to reach the 50-game milestone, joining Jaz Smith, while also becoming the fifth SANFLW player alongside Leah Tynan (North), Leah Cutting (Norwood), and Ellie Kellock (Glenelg).