Gaelic star Aoife Horisk has chosen to by-pass the draft and instead has chosen Melbourne as her club of choice for the 2026 season.
Hailing from County Tyrone, Horisk was invited by the AFL to the AFLW Draft Combine and has been a highly sought-after talent due to her speed and workrate.
She was the fastest woman in the 20m sprint at the AFLW Draft Combine, and is seen as an aggressive half-forward with the potential to move to high forward.
Melbourne AFLW General Manager, Clare Pettyfor, expressed her delight at the Irishwoman choosing to become a Demon.
“We are incredibly excited to have Aoife join the red and blue. Aoife is a proven star of the Gaelic competition and her traits as an athlete make us very excited about what she can achieve in the game of AFLW,” Pettyfor said.
“With her speed, aggression, workrate and ability to hit the scoreboard, we anticipate that she will be able to pick up the game of AFLW quickly.
"The club has previously had the opportunity to travel to Ireland and put Aoife through her paces and we were very impressed with how naturally she took to the oval ball. “We look forward to welcoming her properly when she arrives in Australia in 2026.”
The AFLW Trade Period concludes on Wednesday 10 December, and the 2025 Telstra AFLW National Draft will take place on Monday 15 December.
