When Luci Murphy and Alexa Madden run onto the ground together at Melbourne Uni on Sunday 23 July they’ll be celebrating their 100 games for the Fitzroy Football Club, and cementing a friendship forged nearly ten years ago as trailblazers of women’s footy.

Lex and Luci first met in Cootumundra in 2014 on a road trip to Sydney to play in the Australian Catholic University’s UniGames team. Neither had played Aussie Rules before.

While Lex had played virtually every sport on offer to girls including athletics, cross country, gymnastics, diving, water polo and hockey, Luci was a gun netballer. But as soon as the Sherrin hit their hands, Lex and Luci took to footy with a passion that’s never waned since.

“We played for the week and loved it so much we begged Jason Slater, who was ACU’s Sport and Clubs Coordinator at the time, to approach Fitzroy to join forces for the 2015 season,” says Luci.

“After three training sessions, with only about 10 players at the first one, the season started from there.”

Joining Lex and Luci in that first Fitzroy women’s side were Liz Olney (who celebrated her 100th game for the Roys earlier this season), along with team mates Lauren Atkinson, Indi Benjamin, Hillary Collett, Sarah Lynas, Gemma Minuz and Tess Young. They haven’t stopped playing together since, forging lifelong friendships that have stood the test of time.

Luci and Lex with fellow foundation player and friend Tess Young

Now an elite midfielder and goal sneak, Lex became Fitzroy’s inaugural captain, with Luci holding up the backline with the zest and good humour she’s known for.

Luci can always be relied on to lighten the mood during the darkest training session and the tightest of games, while Lex’s standout contributions are exhibited through her exemplary leadership on and off the field. Her instant success with the oval ball also resulted in her selection to Essendon’s VFLW team.

Loyal and integral team players across the more than nine years they’ve been playing for the Roys, Lex and Luci always take the extra effort to make new players feel included.

This is exemplified by the strong and enduring friendship Lex and Luci have cemented with Cass Blake since she joined the Roys. Now current captain, Cass and Luci were Lex’s assistants when she married fellow Roy Max Ellis last November in what’s been deemed a right Fitzroyal wedding.

With their fellow foundational players, Lex and Luci are fearless advocates for women’s football, not only enriching the culture at Fitzroy, but imparting invaluable knowledge about the way women go about the game and helping us all recognise what’s different and special about women’s footy.

When football and friendship come together, there’s simply nothing better.