In a huge coup for Port Adelaide, the club has secured the signature of Gold Coast captain Hannah Dunn for season seven of NAB AFLW.

After spending the last two seasons as captain of the Suns, Dunn brings extraordinary maturity and leadership experience to the club.

After being delisted by GWS following the 2017 season, she excelled when given a second chance by Gold Coast in 2020.

The 30-year-old defender went on to play 24 games for the Suns including 17 as captain.

The two-year gap between AFLW contracts saw Dunn build on her skills and resilience through a year-long stint with Canberra club Queanbeyan Tigers, followed by a season with Norwood in the SANFL.

Dunn is keen for the opportunity to move back to South Australia and experience the culture on offer at Port Adelaide.

“I’ve lived in Adelaide before and I loved it so I’m excited to be back,” she said.

“The program Port Adelaide is building is amazing and that’s one of the things that really attracted me to the club.

“Being around an amazing club with such a rich history is so exciting. It's also so cool being in a footy state – people in South Australia just love footy and I can’t wait to be a part of that. The fact that there’s such a big fanbase here and they care so much about the club, I think that’s really exciting to be able to experience that.”

The Canberra-native works in sales and marketing around her football commitments and hopes to transition seamlessly into a similar role in Adelaide.

Hannah Dunn joins Port Adelaide's AFLW list for its inaugural season. Image: Matt Sampson PAFC.

Port Adelaide head coach Lauren Arnell is particularly excited about how Dunn will fit into the culture at the club.

“Hannah was obviously captain of the Suns and every single time we talk to players, we talk about culture,” Arnell said.

“We know Hannah has led the way at the Suns and that she is an outstanding individual who has the ability to bring people together and shows genuine care and support for her teammates. We know she will fully invest herself into the footy club.

“Something we really pride ourselves on is having players who can win one-on-one contest and that’s a great strength for Hannah.”