Amelie Borg and Ella Heads are both part of the team's leadership group this season. Image: Matt Sampson.

They arrived at Port Adelaide by very different paths. 

One was there from the beginning, drafted as a teenager and balancing Year 12 with the demands of being part of the club's inaugural AFLW side. 

The other had to wait for her opportunity, missing out in her draft year before earning her place in the AFLW system through the Sydney Swans academy, and eventually finding a new home at Alberton. 

But this weekend, Amelie Borg and Ella Heads will share the same milestone. 

When Port Adelaide takes on Melbourne at Casey Fields on Sunday afternoon, the pair will play their 50th AFLW games, another significant chapter in two journeys that have helped shape the club's talented defensive group. 

For Heads, reaching the milestone is something she once never imagined possible. 

“I never thought I’d be a 50-game player. It was a bit of a different journey for me, missing out on my draft year in the first year of footy, and then having another year to get onto a list and be in an academy program in Sydney,” Heads said. 

“I think it was good for me. It made me grow up a bit quicker by playing every game in my first season and going through the highs and lows of quite a few losses and trying to build during the season. It just built my work ethic and my determination to get better.” 

That determination has become a defining feature of the 22-year-old's football. 

After earning a Rising Star nomination in 2023 during her time at Sydney, Heads has continued to develop into one of the competition's most reliable young defenders. 

She arrived at Port Adelaide during the 2024 trade period and immediately established herself as an important part of the Power's backline, earning her second 22under22 selection in 2025. 

Now a member of Port Adelaide's leadership group, Heads is averaging 16.3 disposals, 11.5 kicks and 7.3 tackles across the opening four rounds of the 2026 season. 

Heads has gone from strength to strength on-field, emerging as one of the competition's premier young defenders. Image: Matt Sampson.

Yet despite reaching her 50-game milestone, the composed defender says her mindset remains unchanged. 

“I am so grateful for every game I’ve played, and I’m just always continuing to look to be better. I’m never satisfied. 

“I think my road to my debut definitely helped in the way I played my footy and the intent that I played it at. Instead of just being okay with certain games, I was very determined to be better every game.” 

Heads' move to South Australia represented more than a change of clubs. 

It was an opportunity to challenge herself, establish new connections and embrace independence away from home. 

“I definitely had a moment where my footy wasn't going anywhere, and I really needed change,” she said. 

“I think moving out of home and having that independence and being in a different city and trying to make something of my life and do something different was really cool. 

Hailing from Sydney, Heads has really enjoyed the growth that has come from a move interstate. Image: Matt Sampson.

“I think that's transferred into my footy, making sure I build new connections with people that I've never met before, and then also trying to learn, but also help other people learn.” 

The transition, she says, has been seamless. 

“It's been awesome playing at Port Adelaide. The girls have been so welcoming, and building connections with them has been so seamless. I feel like I've been here for so many more years, which is crazy.” 

Those connections have also helped shape Heads' approach to leadership. 

Having experienced the uncertainty of trying to find her place in the AFLW system, she is determined to provide younger teammates with the support she once needed herself. 

“I’ve been trying to be what I wanted and needed when I came into a program to the younger girls,” she said. 

Heads leads the way both on and off-field as an excellent role model for the younger players. Image: Matt Sampson.

“It’s something that I've really looked to do and become as a player and leader. We've just got such an exciting group of players, and it's really fun to play footy here.” 

Her impact and potential have also been recognised off the field, with Heads recently committing her long-term future to Port Adelaide by signing a four-year contract extension to remain at Alberton until 2030. 

For Borg, meanwhile, Port Adelaide has been home since the very beginning. 

Selected with the club's sixth pick in the 2022 NAB AFLW Draft, Borg was still completing Year 12 when she became part of Port Adelaide's inaugural AFLW squad. 

A lifelong Port Adelaide supporter, pulling on the black, white and teal was an experience she will never forget. 

“Growing up I was a Port Adelaide supporter, so to get drafted here while in Year 12 was a huge honour. I’ll never forget it. I was so excited,” Borg said. 

The talented key defender made her AFLW debut in Round 1 of Port Adelaide's inaugural season – a moment that, at the time, felt bigger than any milestone that might follow. 

A Port Adelaide supporter since birth, Borg was a part of the team's first draft class. Image: AFL Photos.

“I definitely didn't think I’d reach the milestone when I debuted. When I'd got told I was debuting in Round 1, the first ever game for Port Adelaide was a huge honour.” 

Five seasons later, Borg has missed just one of Port Adelaide's 51 AFLW games. 

The competitive defender has developed into one of the club's most consistent performers, with her one-on-one strength and ability to compete in the air earning her back-to-back AFLPA 22under22 selections and an All-Australian squad nomination. 

Her development has also extended well beyond the boundary line. 

Ahead of the 2025 season, Borg was voted in by her teammates as co-vice-captain and now plays an important role in helping lead the group she joined as one of its youngest members. 

“To now be vice-captain and be able to help lead our group, knowing that five years ago I was one of the draftees who was under Erin Phillips… I'm so grateful,” Borg said. 

“I feel like I’ve grown up here. Even walking around the hallways now and being able to be myself, I do feel like it's kind of my second home now. Every time I'm here, I have a smile on my face.” 

The growth of Borg's career has mirrored the growth of Port Adelaide's AFLW program. 

Borg has grown up alongside the program and is recognised as one of the club's leaders. Image: Matt Sampson.

From those early days of navigating the demands of the elite level, to a program continuing to build greater professionalism and ambition, the 21-year-old has had a front-row seat to the evolution. 

“In the first season, it was obviously our first time being in the AFLW, so I didn't know what to expect,” Borg said. 

“I'd never been in a women's program, but I'd heard from some of the older girls who had been in other programs at different clubs how it was really different in that first year. 

“Maybe we weren't as professional and understood what it takes to be a full-time athlete, and that's what we're striving for. 

“So, to see the change now is incredible, and I think just the people in the program who just give so much time…it’s so special. Our program has grown a lot.” 

Both Borg and Heads have embraced the new direction of the football program in 2026, with senior coach Glenn Strachan and his coaching group bringing fresh ideas to Alberton. 

“Having Glenn come in and just a refresh of the coaching staff has been so good. Being able to learn off different people, it's been amazing,” Heads said. 

Borg has shared similar excitement about the direction of the group. 

“I've really enjoyed Glenn as a coach. He's taught me a lot already in such a short amount of time and I’m really excited to see what he's doing with our program, because I know it's heading in the right way,” Borg said. 

For Heads, the evolution of AFLW itself has also been one of the most exciting parts of her journey. 

“The style of footy has changed the most. I think it started off being really exciting, but just really frantic. And now teams are very process-driven and trying to find marks and play a really cool brand of footy.” 

“It's really exciting to see how you can pick apart different teams and see how teams play against each other, and it's a cool way of learning as well.” 

While Sunday's milestone will provide an opportunity to reflect, neither defender is looking too far backwards. 

For Borg, reaching 50 games is a reminder of just how far she has come. 

“I'm very excited to reach 50 games. I'm very honoured to be able to play all of those games at Port Adelaide as well,” she said. 

“I've never really expected anything in my career. I've worked hard to be in the place that I am now. If you told me six years ago, I wouldn't believe I'd be playing 50 out of 51 games for Port Adelaide.” 

For Heads, the focus is on continuing to improve and enjoying every step along the way. 

The duo are enjoying their football under senior coach Glenn Strachan. Image: Matt Sampson.

“I just want to continue to strive for consistency with my footy. I just want to be a really consistent player and show up for my teammates,” she said. 

“And of course, I really want to win a flag but just having fun doing it. I think we all play our best footy when we're having fun, and I know I do as well.” 

If she could offer advice to the younger version of herself who was still searching for an AFLW opportunity, Heads knows exactly what she would say. 

“Never give up and just keep striving for better. I think there's always something you can look to do better. And also, find the fun. 

“If you’re not having fun, what’s the point in doing it?” 

When the two run out together on Sunday to mark their milestone games, they’ll be a shining example to the next generation of footballers of what’s possible. 

Two very different journeys have resulted in a shared milestone. And for two of Port Adelaide’s young leaders, there are plenty more chapters yet to be written.