Off the field, Jenna Bruton is quiet. A humble potato farmer from Trentham, she leads in her own way.
On it, she is aggressive, driven and always rises to the occasion. A big game player.
North Melbourne’s inaugural best and fairest winner and a triple-premiership player, Bruton is set apart by her high footy IQ, intelligent timing and ball use, and she has adapted her game to numerous roles across an illustrious 10-year career.
But above all, she’s described as an incredible teammate, someone who has her teammates’ backs and simply, someone you want on your side.
As she prepares to play her 100th game against Carlton in Saturday's qualifying final, Bruton reflects on the impact of her late mother Suzy, her Achilles injury in the 2023 Grand Final and the other moments that have shaper her career.
My older brothers (Lewis and Sam) both played at Trentham Football Club and I started when I was about seven.
Mum (Suzy) said I should play and my uncle said I should play as well.
There were a few people that didn’t really want me to play because I was a girl, and that’s always the way.
When I was seven, I played in the under 11s and I was in my brothers’ team. We won the flag that year.
That’s how I got started, I played up until under 13s and then I must’ve been 13 because the girls couldn’t play in the boys’ league anymore, so I took a year off because there was nowhere to play.
Mum drove me to all my games … I played cricket and a few other sports, so she took me to absolutely everything.
Because we were in the country, it was like over an hour's drive every time. She was a big part of why I played footy.
The year she got diagnosed with brain cancer, I didn't nominate for the (2016) AFLW draft. She was pretty angry that I didn't, so I'm glad she got to see me play eventually.
During the time of mum’s diagnosis, I didn’t want to commit to playing football, I just wanted to focus on family.
Jas (Garner) supported me throughout pretty much everything. She’s been through the highs and lows, literally everything, I’m pretty lucky to have her.
Dad (Ray) was a massive support as well. Mum did all the driving but he was still at every footy game and still is.
I was just mainly disappointed. But people always say you have to lose one to win one.
It was probably the best thing for us, and we were lucky enough to get back in 2024 for the next Grand Final.
The Achilles injury was tough, I’d never had a major injury before.
Our physios and doctors were very supportive, Bill (Williams) and Mel (Haberfield), and I was lucky because I didn’t really miss out on any games.
It was a long, long road back. I’d always have my runners on and never go bare feet. I’d always chuck my moonboot on if I was walking over 3,000 steps. So, I took it very seriously.
It’s probably taken me a couple years to get back properly. Well, my body’s still not right but I’m playing better footy.
Mel the physio actually said ‘Look, it’s going to take about a year to get back’ and I remember being like ‘No, f***, I’m going to get back quicker.
But then it got to the rehab and I thought yeah it might take some time, but I never thought I wouldn't be able to come back from it.
I know it was pretty special because mum got to see me win that.
She was in hospital at the time, so she very excited.
I remember my brother was there, and he called her straight away and was like, 'Oh, she's won it!'
It’s hard - I always get both grannies mixed up but the best moment is probably the final siren of the 2024 Grand Final.
I remember being on the bench and just hugging all the coaches and stuff.
We were like, 'wow, we've finally done it', so that was definitely the highlight.
Body-wise I thought I'd struggle to get to this point. Probably. Coming into the competition I thought I might be able to play a couple of years.
I'm very grateful to be able to play 100 games.
