Yvonne Bonner content that latest Aussie Rules leap of faith is paying off

Yvonne Bonner admits she’s so grateful her gamble at a second stint in the AFLW with the Adelaide Crows is paying off. 

The Glenfin ace and husband Paul had lived and worked in Australia previously before her initial shot with Greater Western Sydney Giants came about back in 2019. 

So that transition to living Down Under once more, in a city they’d had the experience of calling home in the past, was seamless. She excelled in her first season, averaging a goal a game. However, the 2020 campaign was cut short just four matches in due to a bad ankle injury. 

The Bonner family are met at the airport on arrival to Adelaide, by a large Crows contingent.  

The Covid pandemic curtailed any notions of a return the following year and, with the Bonners also welcoming baby Bríd into the world soon after, their Australian adventures seemed like they’d finally come to an end.  

She’d help fire Donegal all the way to an All-Ireland semi-final clash with Meath in 2022 but but suffered heartbreak as they just came up short at Croke Park. She was also back playing with Glenfin with Paul taking on the reins as team manager. 

But when the chance did arise once more, this year, to return to Oz, that decision didn’t feel as straightforward as it had on so many other occasions. 

“It felt like a big decision at the time but, I have to say, the Crows have been absolutely amazing,” Bonner told DonegalLive. “The last time we were out, in 2020, Covid ended that. Bríd came along and both myself and Paul had different commitments at home. 

“I was also back playing for the club and he was managing them. We were also blessed with Bríd. So you kind of thought that chapter, Australia, was closed. But when the opportunity did come along once more, we had to really ask ourselves ‘should we try this again?’ 

“Listen, we both love Australia and had enjoyed every minute we previously spent out here. We’re not getting any younger either and, I suppose not wanting to have regrets, we took the plunge once more. 

“But Adelaide is a really nice place. It’s very country here compared to the likes of Sydney. There isn’t as much traffic and it’s so easy to get around. And having Bríd with us, it’s a brilliant spot for her. 

“In the end, the move over was so easy. The club had everything laid on. The house, car, cot… there was even food in the fridge! So we’ve been blessed.  It was absolutely amazing.

“And I get to spend great time with Bríd, which is brilliant”.

In last weekend’s ‘Battle of Donegal’, Tanya Kennedy and the Sydney Swans eliminated Niamh McLaughlin and the Gold Coast Suns from the AFLW finals running for this term. 

At the same time, Bonner and Adelaide suffered a 39-37 loss to Brisbane. But because of their table-topping finish in the ten-game regulation league season - the Crows get a second shot at staying in the championship this weekend. 

And as fate would have it, we will now be treated to another Donegal duel in the last four as Bonner and her Crows teammates go head to head with Kennedy and the Swans. 

She says she’s not surprised her Donegal teammates have been instant hits at Aussie Rules. 

“Niamh came out, never played it before, but was brilliant in her first year. Tanya got in in a late draft with the Swans and I was so delighted she got her opportunity. They’ve grabbed their chances with both hands. 

“It’s a jot to watch the two of them. They’re great players and they’ve been great ambassadors for Donegal football out here”. 

She added: “We knew we’d be up against it against Brisbane last weekend. They were the only side to beat us in the regulation round series. There was only two points in that game and it was the exact same last weekend.

“We’ve a second chance against Sydney this time out. So we really want to get over the line. But their tails are certainly up after last weekend”. 

Kennedy - and the impressive manner she is putting the shackles on some of the game’s top players - is earning rave reviews in AFLW circles right now. 

Against Gold Coast, she again shut down dangerman Claudia Whitfort and that went a long way in allowing Sydney to cause the upset. 

Bonner fits in that same ‘dangerous’ category but she explains she wouldn’t be surprised to see Kennedy assigned to tailing Adelaide’s other Irish star, Mayo girl Niamh Kelly. 

“I don’t think I’m that dangerous! Bonner laughs. “She might be lining up another Irish girl, Niamh Kelly, who is going really well. She’s having a brilliant season. 

“But Tanya has been snuffing out anyone that comes her way so whoever it is will have their work cut out. 

“But we’re looking forward to it. They’ve had a great season and even though the Suns might have been favourites, the Swans were deserving winners last weekend. We know we’re going to have to be at our very best”. 

Bonner only returned to action last Saturday after picking up a knee injury mid-October which sidelined her for three games. Having had her first Aussie stint ended by an ankle ligament complaint back in 2019, did she think Dejavu had struck? 

“Thankfully, t was just a sort of a hyperextension. I played on but I still knew something was wrong. The doctors and physios were quick with their testing and said about three weeks right away. And when I got the scan later on they were right. 

“It was unfortunate but, in a way, lucky too as it wasn’t that serious”. 

At 8.45 Saturday morning (Irish time), Donegal's original AFLW trailblazer goes up against their latest one and, regardless of the outcome, the county are at least guaranteed final representation. 

"That's the great upside to it, I guess," jokes Bonner. "But whoever edges it though will deserve it. But it'll go right to the wire, I've not doubt about that".