Something to Crow about

WHEN former Mount Gambier based athlete Alice Tentye was awarded best on ground for South Australia in the State of Origin clash with Western Australia earlier this year, her ambitions were clear.

“AFLW is definitely something I aspire to,” she said. “Since only debuting last year, my focus right now is building consistency at SANFLW level and continuing to develop my game each week. I’m just trying to take every opportunity as it comes and keep improving wherever I can, in the hope of reaching that next level (AFLW).”

Safe to say that opportunity has arrived even sooner than the driven Tentye could ever have imagined.

Earlier this month she was signed as a replacement player for the Adelaide Crows in the upcoming AFLW season.

Playing predominantly as a midfielder, Tentye has been focussed on developing her game in what is a strong program at her SANFLW club Woodville-West Torrens and she had been training as part of the Crows pre-season program.

“It gave me exposure to the standards and habits required at AFLW level,” she said.

The 20-year-old debuted for the Eagles in Round 10 last year, after being scouted from the Limestone Coast Women’s Football League, and has so far the current SANFLW season been averaging 26 disposals, 9.4 tackles, 4.1 clearances and 3.6 marks per game.

Crows executive general manager AFLW Bree Brock said Tentye had been having a standout season in the SANFLW thanks to her contested work and clearance ability.

“Alice has a fierce nature and is a bit of a contested beast, she’s got great hands when she hunts the ball and will take to the AFLW environment really well,” Brock said.

“Alice has been a train-on for our side this year and through that opportunity has also proven her importance as a teammate and we are looking forward to seeing her flourish this season.”

Tentye is replacing Danielle Ponter, who has been placed on the club’s inactive list for the 2026 season after announcing she is expecting her first child in December.

Tentye’s football journey that started when she was quite young but initially was just one of a suite of sports to which she turned her hand.

“I’ve always been heavily involved in sport and loved trying new sports growing up,” she said. “I first started playing competitive football with my brother at Glencoe in the Mid South East League, where I played mixed junior colts as one of two females in the team.

“That’s really where my passion for football began. I played junior football for five years before transitioning into the Limestone Coast AFL Women’s League.”

Tentye racked up 62 senior games in the relatively newly established Limestone Coast AFL Women’s League and also represented the league at State Zone Carnival, earning a place in the Team of the Carnival.

“Not long after that, I received a phone call from Woodville-West Torrens Eagles SANFLW head coach Narelle Smith asking about my interest in joining the program,” Tentye said. “It all happened at the perfect time because I was already planning to move to Adelaide for university, so signing with the Eagles felt like a good opportunity.”

When she is not on the training track or playing a game, Tentye is studying a double degree in Human Movement with a Masters of Teaching.