Mel Kuys Announced as Captain Among VFLW Leadership Group of Five

As revealed exclusively at our VFLW Season Launch last night, the Port Melbourne Football Club are thrilled to announce Melissa Kuys as our inaugural VFLW captain ahead of season 2021 commencing this Saturday.

Kuys (centre, image above) represented one of the Borough’s highest-profile recruits when signing with the Club prior to Christmas, with her extensive experience and on-field achievements subsequently making her a clear standout when Head Coach Lachie Harris set about choosing his leader.

Kuys has been listed with AFLW clubs Collingwood (2017-2019) and St. Kilda (2020) for the past four years and brings much-welcomed elite level experience to the Borough’s program.

2021 also won’t be the first time that Kuys has been an inaugural skipper of a VFLW Club, having also had the same role during Hawthorn’s debut 2017 season in the competition.

“I’ve had the pleasure of working with Mel previously (at Collingwood), and we’ve had a lot of conversations about how we can continue to drive this group forward,” Harris said.

“Mel’s got great experience at AFLW level at two clubs and also captain in her own right at state league level, so she’s got the knowledge required.

“She’s also passionate about education from a coaching point of view and an on-field point of view in terms of developing the young Borough girls up to the next level,” he said.

Joining Kuys for the journey ahead will be four other new additions to the Port Melbourne Football Club in the overall formation of a five-strong VFLW Leadership Group.

Alongside Kuys as vice-captain for 2021 will be Claire Dyett (second, from right).

Dyett joins the Borough fresh from a stint on Hawthorn’s VFLW list, and Harris said he had been “super impressed” with her from the moment she stepped foot in the Club.

“Claire is wanting to drive standards, build the culture and continue the push to make everyone better,” he said.

“The vibe she’s brought in in terms of getting the group to connect has been so impressive and I’m incredibly excited to see her journey on the field at her new Club.”

Lisa Davie (second, from left), Katrina Tinson (far left) and Abbey Tanner (far right) make up the rest of the Leadership Group for the year ahead, following a confidential vote across the entire playing group that resulted in a third of the group receiving votes as ‘leaders’ by their peers.

“I think it says a lot about the quality of people that we have within the Club already, and how all of the girls already respect each other,” Harris said.

The Port Melbourne Football Club would like to officially congratulate Mel, Claire, Lisa, Katrina and Abbey on their respective appointments to the Leadership Group, and wish them all the best in season 2021.

A historic Round 1 clash awaits the Borough when they clash with North Melbourne tomorrow morning at Arden Street Oval.

Action will get underway at 10:00am, with all VFLW matches to be streamed through the VFLW digital channels.

Rolling updates will also be provided from the game via the Port Melbourne FC social media channels.

Article: Sam Wharton.

Image: Emily Fraser-Ison.