FORMER Portland footballer Jess Rentsch is playing the best footy of her career after coming back from a broken leg she suffered last season, and as a result the 17-year-old was presented with her Australian Academy jumper on Sunday before her first game representing the AFLW Academy.

While Rentsch was selected in the high-performance academy back in November of last year, receiving her jumper and getting the opportunity to play the match was another huge       towards her dream.

The AFLW Academy side, with Rentsch lining up on the half-back line, took on the All-Stars Under-23 side at Marvel Stadium on Sunday and fell just two points short at the final siren, 44-42.

“I found out (about making the academy) like last year, November maybe … I was super excited but felt nervous and a lot of pressure as I was obviously coming off a broken leg,” she said.

“I am feeling blessed, super grateful and stoked, it feels so surreal, words cannot describe what it was like to walk out onto an AFL ground like Marvel and get to play with a group of girls that all feel like sisters.”

The jumper presentation was a moment that Rentsch won’t forget, the young gun said receiving it made it all feel “real.”

She said playing the game was also a great experience and having some family there supporting her and cheering her on was a great feeling.

“Getting my jumper presented to me was really exciting and I really enjoyed it … for the first time it clicked that I was playing for Australia which sounds unreal,” she said.

“As a team we went really well and connected nicely together it was at such a high standard … I feel I could have played better but when I had the chance, I did some good things.”

The 30-player squad has taken part in a number of training sessions since late last year and learnt a lot about what it’s like to play footy in an elite environment, after training at AFL club facilities.

Rentsch is one of the most promising prospects in Australia for her age and was selected in the program to help prepare her for the rigours of high-level sport with camps delivering sessions covering both football and general education.

“I didn’t really know it was something I was eligible to get into, and I didn’t even think for a second that I would be selected,” she said.

The coach of the AFLW Academy is former Collingwood player, Tarkyn Lockyer who said the game was a great opportunity for the girls to showcase their talent.

"For the players in the AFL Academy Girls program it will be a significant honour to wear the Australia jumper and represent their country," he said.

“The 2023 AFLW Academy comprises players from every state and territory in Australia and features a selection of the most talented young female footballers in the country.”

Juggling commitments

This year has been a whirlwind for Rentsch who has taken on a leadership position for her Greater Western Victoria Rebels team, been selected in a number of squads and is juggling her year 12 studies at Ballarat Grammar.

She took on the leadership role of co-captain at the Greater Western Victoria (GWV) Rebels in the Coates Talent League earlier this year.

On top of this, the 2024 AFLW draft prospect has been selected in the Vic Country squad for the Under-18 Girls National Championships which start next month.

All these achievements are made more significant by her resilience and commitment to coming back after her injury last year.

“The leg’s going alright (but) it gets stiff after games sometimes so can be annoying … but hopefully the plate and eight screws will come out September sometime and then it won’t be too long of a recovery time back to normal,” Rentsch said.

Most people know Jess Rentsch as a hard-tackling midfielder who goes at the contest ferociously, but a positional change has seen her playing most of her footy running off half back this season.

Rentsch describes herself as a strong and explosive player who uses her voice to instil leadership into the group.

“While I had played mid for the last couple of games at Rebels, I have been playing majority on the half back so I can use my speed … as well as just making sure that I do the one percenters and repeated efforts like tackling,” she said.

“I have played a little bit of back before, so I roughly knew what I was doing, but just had to make sure that I was on my player and being aware and accountable.”

While the obvious goal for the emerging star is to be selected by a club in the 2024 AFLW draft midway through next year, she is not getting too invested into her achievements thus far.

“I just want to focus on my fundamentals and ensuring that I’m playing at the best of my ability with a good running capacity to take on the game,” she said.

“(I can hopefully) hit the ground running when it comes to playing the elite standard of AFLW.

“If I get selected (to play) in the National Champs, my objective is to just lay some good tackles, go hard at it and have fun and just try my best.”

The first game for the Vic Country team will see the side travel north to play Queensland at Brighton Homes Arena on July 30.