Summary

Layla Murphy is an aspiring AFLW footy player living in Swan Hill.

Introduction:

Layla Murphy and her family live in Swan Hill. In 2023 Layla was playing for Lake Boga under 12s (mixed team) and Swan Hill girls under 12s. She has been playing football for seven years, beginning with Auskick and she was part of the Swan Hill girls team that won the grand final in 2023. Layla plays at either forward flank or on the wing.

A Banner of Support:

On Sunday 10 September 2023 Layla and her whole family travelled down to the Arden Street Oval in North Melbourne to support Layla's cousin Ruby Tripodi (midfielder number 19) who was playing her first season for North Melbourne. Ruby was recruited from the VFLW Williamstown, where she had been a two-time best and fairest winner, with the 23rd pick of the 2023 supplementary draft.

Although Layla has traditionally barracked for Geelong, she was keen to show her support for cousin Ruby by making a banner from paper and collage, featuring Ruby Tripodi's photo, name and number. Layla stood at the fence at one of the goal ends holding her banner over the fence. North Melbourne beat Carlton 66 to 6. Ruby had six disposals, two kicks, five handballs, one mark and four tackles in the 47 minutes she was on the ground.

Layla's mother Michelle reflected after the match:

'When Layla found out that she was going to watch Ruby, she was very excited. She didn't waste any time and started to make a banner, like they have in the AFL, to show her support for Ruby.'

'Layla was keen to find a position on the fence at Arden Street, so that she could proudly hang her banner in full view, hoping Ruby would see it. She was in awe of the game and how close she was to the girls, it was a country football like atmosphere.' 

'Layla's love for football has always been fierce and one day she hopes to take the field, just like Ruby and her other idols, Tayla Harris, Daisy Pierce and Amy McDonald. She would be okay with playing for North Melbourne one day but her dream is to play AFLW with her beloved Geelong!'

Layla and Michelle donated the banner to the Museum's AFLW collection in 2023 along with photographs documenting her playing career. A Pair of Pink Footy Boots: In 2025, Layla donated her pair of pink footy boots, the first boots she ever wore on a footy ground. Layla reflects: 'I don't really remember when we bought the boots, but my fondest memory of wearing these pink boots would have to be when I was selected to play an Auskick game at Marvel Stadium for my local club Lake Boga. We got to watch the Essendon vs Fremantle game for the first two quarters in the Grand stand and at half time made our way down to the change rooms.' 'We were playing for Essendon against another club dressed in Fremantle gear. I recall being very excited, especially because I got to play alongside my best mate Jack. That night, I also kicked a nice goal. I snapped it from the right point post and watched it eagerly, waiting to see if it would go in-between the goals. I remember being extremely overcome with joy, running around high-fiving my teammates.' 'When the ending halftime siren had gone we had to make our way quickly off the field. I saw the Essendon players but I didn't get to meet them. It was an amazing experience, one I could never forget. When I got home, I remembered that dad had told me to pick some grass from the ground of Marvel Stadium as a memento but I forgot to. So at home, I scraped all the grass off the bottom of my pink footy boots and put it into a container that I still have to this day. The grass has slowly turned into dirt by this point but it is still a great memory!' In 2025, Layla has been playing in the under 12's Lake Boga team; she also pulled on the Swan Hill Girl's footy jumper again, playing under 15's girls football in a four week mini competition which she loves. And Layla was selected in the Central Rivers under 15 girls Interleague team, playing against Sunraysia Football Netball League (Central Rivers is a combination of the Central Murray FNL and Golden Rivers FNL). So Layla's AFLW adventure continues strongly!

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