Bridie Winbanks came to the Tigers from Waverley, her love for the game in her genes, with her father David playing for both St.Kilda and the Sydney Swans. Bridie starting playing football mid-season in 2015. She went to watch her friend play and before long she was dragged over the fence to fill in as the side was lacking numbers. Her love and passion for the game quickly grew as she did, Standing 182.4cm tall Bridie is a fierce ruck that is rarely beaten. Since that first game in 2015 it has been a whirlwind journey for Bridie. During the 2015 season Bridie took the punt at trialling with the Sandringham Dragons Youth Girls Academy and showed enough to be offered a position in the program. Early in 2016 Winbanks and the Sandringham Dragons played in the Inaugural Youth Girls Academy Challenge where her and her team dominated the competition winning 5 games in a row to charge into the Grand Final. Unfortunately the Dragons couldn’t get the win in the final but our very own Bridie walked off head high, having put in a strong performance. This led to an opportunity to trial with the Vic Metro team. In exciting news for Bridie and her family she was selected to be a part of the final 35 playing squad to represent Vic Metro at the upcoming National Championships. This week she bites her nails in anticipation after being selected as the first emergency for the Victoria’s opening practice match. We would like to congratulate Bridie on her amazing achievements in such a short time and wish her all the best for a bright and successful future, representing SBMT and Victoria. If you’re ever down watching our U18 Youth Girls keep and eye out for that tall number 17.