AFLW trailblazer Erin Phillips has paid an emotional tribute to her dad, Greg, after becoming the first father-daughter inductees into the Australian Football Hall of Fame.
On Tuesday night, Phillips joined Daisy Pearce as the first AFLW players inducted into the Hall of Fame.
As Phillips took to the stage to accept her recognition, she spoke directly to her teary-eyed father in the crowd.
“To dad, I can’t imagine how hard it would’ve been to tell your 13-year-old daughter that she couldn’t play the game she loves anymore. And 27 years later, she’s standing next to you in the Hall of Fame.”
“Thank you for teaching me a game that I loved, and even though you knew it wasn’t going to take me anywhere at the time, you still taught me anyway.”
Thanking her mum, Phillips said: “you don’t really ever get much credit… I thank you and I love you so much”.
She also thanked her wife, Tracy Gahan, who herself is a retired WNBA player, and Phillips recognised Debbie Lee, the inaugural woman to be inducted into the Hall of Fame back in 2021.
“Debbie, you kicked down this door so others could walk through,” Phillips said.
“[You’re the] first female member of the Hall of Fame [and] I’m so proud to be by your side, and I can’t wait to kick more doors down with you Deb.”
One of the AFLW’s all-time icons, Phillips is a three-time Adelaide premiership player and two-time league Best and Fairest winner. Her AFLW career began with Adelaide before moving to Port Adelaide in 2022 for their inaugural season- the same club her father had played at during his own successful career.
Growing up, Phillips said she only ever dreamed of being a footballer like her dad, but there were no pathways available to women in the sport at the time. Instead, she turned to basketball, where she spent two decades as an elite international player in the United States.
With the formation of the AFLW in 2017, Phillips was called back to Australia and founder herself finally able to join the sport that was closed off to her at 13-years-old.
Reflecting on her journey at the Hall of Fame induction, Phillips said: “I never wanted to be a boy, I just wanted the opportunities that boys had — and that was footy. That was all I ever wanted.”
Receiving a Hall of Fame induction alongside Phillips, beloved AFLW powerhouse Daisy Pearce told the crowd that her victory at the Melbourne 2022 grand final—her last AFLW game—was the best day of her life.
“It’s controversial to say this, as a mother … don’t get me wrong, they’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me, but on a technicality, the day itself is not that good,” Pearce said.
“Give me grand final day every day of the week.”