Skye eyes 2026 return to the field
By James Buckley
In partnership with Toyota.
Skye Hamblin walked back from the 50m arc, turned back around and eyed up the big sticks as the seconds ticked down on North Wagga's 2022 premiership dream.
She'd been waiting five years for this moment, ever since a torn ACL threatened to derail her burgeoning Aussie Rules career.
Moving in, Hamblin dropped the ball onto her thumping right boot, which kicked truly to break the preliminary final deadlock.
"I was sitting outside 50 trying to build the wall, it was ping ponging around, and it just managed to come out, I was on my own for some reason and I marked it," Hamblin recalled.
"I didn't think too hard about it. I just went back and had a good crack at it. I was like, even if I kick a point, who cares, and it ended up going through for a goal which was pretty cool and then the siren went."
The 29-year-old wasn't always a dominant full forward.
Skye's legendary 2022 moment. North Wagga players celebrate after Skye's late goal clinched victory in Friday's preliminary final against Collingullie-Glenfield Park. Picture: Madeline Begley
A self-described 'black sheep', Hamblin grew up in Mackay surrounded by a talented rugby league family. Her older brother, Andrew Davey, played 44 NRL matches for Parramatta, Manly and Canterbury, but Hamblin pursued a different route.
Before moving to the Riverina to marry her now husband Jake in 2018 she discovered a different code, but knee surgery brought an 11-month stint on the sidelines.
"I just spent a lot of time at training, rehabbing my knee and learning how to kick properly," Hamblin said.
"I spent a lot of time at the field by myself just kicking goals and getting used to the ball.
"I did do some work with a bloke named Mitch Fennessy, he's a one-on-one kicking coach. He helped just tidy up a few things, being able to spot where I'd gone wrong in my kicks, kicking goals, getting the feel for doing different types of kicks, different angles.
"I really fell in love with the sport that year, and a lot of my friends were in the footy club as well.
"I've always been a very competitive person in general anyway. I just wanted to get back to playing sport and I really love footy."
Skye eyes 2026 return to the field
Hamblin's commitment yielded instant success. She returned to the field in time to help Bakers Creek Tigers win a flag in the Mackay competition, before moving to NSW.
After a stint with the Riverina Lions, she switched to North Wagga while simultaneously playing in the Canberra competition, for Tuggeranong and then Eastlake.
Her and Jake have since moved out to Ganmain, where Hamblin now calls Ganmain-Grong Grong-Matong home, and this year celebrated the birth of their first child, Charlie.
That forced Hamblin into a temporary hiatus from playing, but she still took on assistant coaching duties and helped the club to a preliminary final.
All going to plan, rival fullbacks won't get it so easy next year.
"I'm aiming to be back next season," Hamblin said.
To find out more, head to Toyota's Good for Footy webpage.
This article has been produced in partnership with Toyota
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