"It doesn't feel real. I didn't really think I was gonna get it, so brilliant that I have."

Eighteen-year old Poppy Scholz was almost in disbelief when her dad told her she was the Round 6 Telstra AFLW Rising Star nominee.

"I thought he was lying cause I thought how would he have this information...I messaged him after the game and I said, 'upon reflection, don't think I played that well'," she said.

"I thought (he was going to) give me a bit of like wisdom and say, 'oh just believe in yourself,' and then he told me I had rising star, and I thought 'no, you're lying!'

With her older sister Matilda Scholz named the 2024 Telstra AFLW Rising Star, it's a special moment for Poppy to follow in her sister's footsteps.

"I kind of just want to do what Matilda (Port Adelaide player) does, and set a pretty high bar. I might FaceTime her hopefully, I just messaged her telling her she needs to call me, so I reckon it could go one of two ways, she'll either be so excited or be, 'oh well, I won so'," she joked.

For Poppy, it was somewhat of a shock to be nominated while playing in the forward line, as she is traditionally a back liner. 

As a first-year player, the team has shown their full support for the junior Blue both on and off the field. She couldn't be happier with how the team has taken her on and become a part of her AFLW journey.

"I played a lot of forward, so it was really different, but it was lots of fun to be able to go in the backline and in the forward line and still have an impact in the game," she said.

"I'm pretty happy going between them, whatever 'Bucky' wants from me.

"I feel like I'm getting there, it's definitely such a different game than what I'm used to, but I feel like the team just is so good at bringing all the draftees in like Lou-Lou debuting.

"I couldn't imagine going into any other team. On the field everyone just supports me so much and has given me a lot of confidence to take the game on and try and play how I play, and off the field the support from the support staff, the team, the coaches, just everyone has been unreal, helping me settle into Melbourne life and AFLW."

Scholz is now focused on her aspirations for the rest of the season, both individual and team focused, aiming to have a successful season in the midst of this exciting achievement.