Inaugural West Coast Eagle Emma Swanson will play her 75^th AFLW game on Saturday against Sydney, the first Eagles AFLW player to reach the milestone.

After playing 13 games for GWS, including the inaugural AFLW season, Swanson joined the Eagles ahead of their first season in 2020.

Swanson, an inspiring leader both on and off the field, captained the club for six seasons, and currently holds the record for most games played in the blue and gold (61).

The 30-year-old defender opted to step down from her leadership role ahead of the 2025 season, handing the reigns to current co-captains Bella Lewis and Charlie Thomas.

Swanson has been a consistent pillar of professionalism, talent and experience, winning back-to-back Club Champions in season six and season seven, and was named the season six Trademark Player.

“It feels really good, it’s a special thing because if you look back 10 seasons’ ago, we only played seven games that season,” Swanson said.

“To finally get to 75 games, after a few injuries in there, it’s special and I’m so glad I’m doing it with this footy club.”

Swanson and her partner welcomed baby boy Joey earlier this year, and she said that while her life may have changed, her love for the game has stayed the same.

“A lot has changed between game one and game 75,” Swanson laughed.

“I’m a mum now, so footy is kind of like my hobby, my number one job is at home.

“But if I think back to my days with the Giants in my first couple of seasons, I loved footy back then and I still love it now, so in that sense, not much has changed.”

With the AFLW currently in its 10^th season, Swanson reflects on how far the competition has come since she was first drafted, and the vast differences between draftees then and now.

“My first day at the Giants, I’d never been to the gym before,” Swanson said.

“You look at these girls coming in now, 18 years old, just been drafted, they’ve been in the gym for four or five years and they’re coming in as ready-made footballers.

“When I first started, I was a little bit naive, a bit unprofessional, I didn’t really know what it takes to get your body to the elite standard and the elite level.

“But these girls coming through now, they’re really aware of what’s going on and what they need to do, and that’s because of the programs that underpin the AFLW now.”

After spending a number of seasons facing off as opposition, and now in a player-coach dynamic, Daisy Pearce praised Swanson’s hard work and resilience.

“She’s just an incredible worker, you have to convince her to have a rest, it’s a tough job trying to talk her out of training,” Pearce said with a smile.

“And that’s what she was like as a player, physical, hardworking, proud, and the way she’s always put her team on her back and been as resilient as she has, it’s been so admirable.

“Her 75^th game this week, it’s been 75 pretty combative games so it’s really impressive that she’s gotten there.”

Swanson and her teammates take on Sydney at Henson Park on Saturday, bouncedown from 10:05am WST, with a win to the Eagles set to secure a historic finals berth for the blue and gold.