Amber Ugle-Hayward named WAFLW Reserves Fairest and Best

Persistence has paid off for Amber Ugle-Hayward with her named the WAFLW Reserves fairest and best winner for the 2022 season and now she has set her sights on earning a regular League spot with Swan Districts in 2023.

Both Swan Districts senior teams played finals again in 2022 and reached preliminary finals which saw them go down to Claremont this past Sunday at Revo Fitness Stadium.

That led into the WAFLW Awards night on Monday held at the Crown Perth Astral Ballroom and once the votes had been counted for the WAFLW Reserves season, it was Ugle-Hayward sitting on top of the leaderboard.

It capped off a terrific season for the 22-year-old where she played 11 matches in the Reserves team where she was a prime mover in the midfield as captain of the Swan Districts side and also ended up kicking eight goals.

She certainly didn’t go along on Monday night expecting to win, but once she saw she was leading after Round 4 her hopes rose, and it was a mix of excitement and relief when she ended up winning.

"I was surprised. Honestly I didn’t think that I would get even in the top three. Last year I went to the awards night and I didn’t even get a vote so comparing last year to this year I was just really stoked," Ugle-Hayward said.

"The way that they did it this year is that they just showed the total after Round 4 and I was on top after that. They then did another skip ahead to Round 7 and I was behind by a vote, and I thought 'oh no I might not get this after all'.

"Then when they were announcing the votes for the rest of the rounds I had a couple of games where I got three votes and I just had a feeling that I might actually get this.

"I was sitting next to Jessica Cox and I asked her to hold my hand because I was a little bit stressed, but as soon as they announced my name it was a mixture of emotions.

"I was so happy and kind of like relieved at the same time because after I was leading after Round 4 it built up some expectations. I was just super stoked and really happy, but I did not think that I would be up there going into the night."

Getting up in front of so many people on the bright lights on stage was naturally a daunting experience for Ugle-Hayward. She might admit to being nervous, but she handled herself impressively as she accepted her well-deserved honour.

"I'm not really fond of public speaking and it's just something I do because I have to sometimes so going up on stage in front of everyone, I was just like 'oh my god'," she said.

"The lights are so bright up there too and because of that you couldn’t really see anyone out there when you're standing on stage. Everyone was in the dark and up there you just felt the heat of the lights.

"As soon as I shook hands with the MC I realised I was going to have to speak. All the stuff I said was just really off the cuff things and I didn’t think about it too much because I didn’t think I'd be up there. I was just still in that sort of surprised mode."

Winning the competition's fairest and best award is without doubt a career highlight for Ugle-Hayward and she feels justifiably it's a reward for her dedication since starting her career in the Youth Girls team at Claremont back in 2016.

However, winning premierships is what means the most to her and that's why she hopes to be part of success soon with Swan Districts to match what she achieved as the best on ground in Claremont's Reserves premiership back in 2018.

"I've been playing footy since 2016 and that first year I was the rising star for my football club. Then the following year it was my first year trying out for state and I got in, and I also won the football club's fairest and best in Youth Girls," Ugle-Hayward said.

"Then in 2018 I got into my first Grand Final and actually won the best on ground in that win that we had. Then after that it kind of petered off and I spent a year in Amateurs where I was Women's A-Grade leading goal scorer for that year, and came runner-up in the club's fairest and best.

"From there was the 2020 COVID season so there wasn’t much in that and I would say considering how long I've been in football, this would be an achievement to show for my commitment over the last six years.

"It's the best individual award I've had, but I'll be honest winning that Grand Final is probably still just ahead of it because I play football for the team success and to play with other people. I would rather win a Grand Final than win fairest and best awards, but I'm still really stoked about it obviously."

While Ugle-Hayward is rightfully proud of the Reserves award, playing regular League football is what her goal remains to be.

She did play two WAFLW matches with Swan Districts in 2022 and acquitted herself well including a 17-possession, four-tackle performance against Claremont in Round 8.

However, she got COVID shortly after which derailed any future League opportunities, but she hopes to earn more chances now in 2023.

"I really wanted to play as much as league as I could this year. I had those two opportunities but then I had COVID and I knew I probably wouldn’t get back into the team," she said.

"I was a bit disheartened because last year one of my goals I set was to play regularly in the league team so I worked really hard on getting fit, eating healthy and when I was playing in the reserves I was just trying to play my best and show what I could do while leading the best I could.

"I've tasted playing league since 2017 when I made my debut for Claremont back then so I know that's where I want to be, it's just about being consistently picked for league that is my next goal."

Now that the 2022 season is over, Ugle-Hayward will be doing all she can in coming months to continue to stay in good shape physically, to keep developing herself in other areas and making sure the team doesn’t lose touch with one another.

"Usually in the off-season I've been doing leadership courses just to help me become a better leader. That's whether it translates onto the football field as the captain of the reserves team or anything else," Ugle-Hayward said.

"I've been doing development courses as well, but fitness wise I kind of hone in on getting a PT and making sure my body is right to go for the pre-season and for the next season.

"I really love playing at Swans and I really want all those young girls to be on that journey as well of reaching that next level.

"So I organise off-season gym groups and catch ups so we keep that consistent connection. I try to do whatever people ask me to do really, I like to keep people happy and whatever I can to help them."