Captain Abbie McKay and vice-captain Mimi Hill sat down with Carlton Media to reflect on the season that was. Here's what they had to say. 

McKay on the Round 1 win against Collingwood:

"It was super special. I was probably more worried about Soph (McKay), thinking how proud I was of her running out for her first time ever. I felt like a bit of Mum, it's her dream to play AFLW so I was in awe of her. It was probably good because it distracted me from the fact it was my first time captaining." 

Hill on the the team's improvement in 2025:

"It's pretty crazy that it happened. We just had our exit meeting and Bucky said "we played in the prelim that's great we want to play in the Grand Final". I was like, we played in a prelim, that's the game before a granny. Obviously you want to get there and win the whole thing, but this was such a new area for us. I guess the message is you don't start there next year, you have to start from the beginning again, so how can we get to the top again?" 

McKay on the Round 12 win against the Eagles: 

"It was a really hard game, we were off the back of a five-day break. It really felt like we had achieved something at the end of that game. Mim and I looked at each other like we did it. We had been dreaming of this for six or seven years. I think the emotion came over us, and there were a lot of tears out there. The main thing was we were super proud of ourselves, we've put in so much effort over the last six or seven years to get to this point." 

Hill on the team's culture:

"We didn't really have to push it, it just happened so naturally. A lot of it came through our young players. The list changed heaps this year, so obviously you're automatically going to have a shift in energy. People that haven't been able to be themselves in past seasons, like Ciara Fitzgerald, they've just blossomed into their whole self and brought all the energy they can. It's always been my dream since playing at Carlton to play this free flowing footy, and get heaps of speed on the ball and that's exactly what we went after." 

McKay on this season's young talent:

"We tried to not put too much pressure on them ... but naturally they're great footballers so their talent shone through. They're going to be really important for us to have sustained success over the next few years, and that's what the goal is, to have sustained success. They've been super important, not just the energy on the field but off the field too." 

"I'm super proud of Soph, I expected her to shine. She's a wonderful footballer, she's got great instincts out on the field. That energy we really needed. It's probably not something that comes naturally to me, but we absolutely love having her there and I'm super proud of her and everything she's brought to the team. 

"It's only the start for Soph and Poppy (Scholz) too." 

Hill on when everything clicked: 

"I think playing that game (Round 3 against Brisbane), it was probably the fact that we played four quarters so well. I remember distinct little moments where certain players just owned their moment. It was just this flow on effect and everyone used that and kept going."

Hill on the team's star All-Australians:

"They just turn up every week. If our best players are playing consistently every week, what that goes the group. Those three are consistently at the top of the list." 

McKay on what's next for the group:

"The vibe's been really good. We're really proud of the season. We've jumped leaps and bounds. This is just the beginning and the start of the journey I guess, and we've got a lot of growing to do. Everyone will go on their break and have some fun and then really dial in when we come back in the new year and take our game to another level."