Day in the life of a Docker: How Fremantle star Hayley Miller prepared for round one clash against Port Adelaide

A few muffled giggles turn into cackles as a group of young Dockers huddle around a singular phone in the kitchen.

“I know exactly what you’re watching!” Gabby O’Sullivan yells, charging towards the commotion. “Is that beast Miller?”

If you ever needed a reminder of how far the AFLW has come, it’s an infamous video of a black-haired, baby-faced Hayley Miller causing chaos for West Perth back in the day.

Unbeknownst to her, the iconic clip is currently being enjoyed by a throng of teammates as Miller prepares for main training in the medical room.

Back then, when the inaugural Docker was throwing her weight around for the Falcons, a national women’s competition was a pipe dream.

Now, ahead of her 10th season at the top level, Miller is a veteran of the competition, players are contracted all-year round and they spend one full day a week at the club.

“It looked nothing like this,” Miller said of the evolution of AFLW. “We used to get in at 5pm and the peak hour traffic was awful.

“At the start, it was similar to WAFLW training in the amount of time you invested. We just didn’t have the resources.

“The training standard was still higher than WAFLW, but compared to now, it’s worlds apart. It’s wild to think where it might end up.”

Ahead of Fremantle’s round one clash against Port Adelaide, Code Sports went behind-the-scenes with the star on her final full day of preparations.

From the gym to the training track and everything in between, Miller and the Dockers pulled back the curtain on what a day in the life of an AFLW player looks like in 2025.

Fremantle’s first-ever draft pick starred against the Power, kicking three goals in Fremantle’s 22-point win.

It was a resolute return to the footy field given the way Miller’s 2024 season ended.

In Fremantle’s semi-final loss against Adelaide, the 29-year-old suffered a significant patella tendon injury in the first half.

By playing on in the second, barely able to move at full forward, Miller revealed she brazenly risked a full rupture which would’ve sidelined her for up to six months.

It was a risk she was willing to take.

She was able to rehab over the off-season without needing surgery, but couldn’t run for nine weeks.

An All-Australian midfielder in her prime, Miller has evolved into a powerful forward under Webb.

And while she’s still one of Fremantle’s star players, she’s been forced to reshape her expectations around her body and what it’s capable of.

“I’ve resisted reducing my load for a few years,” she said. “I’ve been in denial about getting older.

“But things do pop up. You get a little bit sore. I don’t recover as quickly as I used to.

“It’s been nice to take away a little bit of that load to make sure I’m feeling really fresh and the time I am out on the track, I’m 100 per cent focused on getting what I need to out of the session.”

On this particular Thursday, Miller is on a modified program along with the likes of Ash Brazill, Emma O’Driscoll, Kiara Bowers, Gabby Biedenweg-Webster and teenager Holly Ifould, the odd one out amongst the ‘oldies.’

The group start the session on the sidelines and only starts warming up around 15 minutes into the session. Meanwhile, their teammates are in the midst of a ball movement drill, shifting the ball from their defensive 50 into attack.

Backline coach and inaugural captain Kara Antonio has been pivotal in helping Miller come to terms with her reduced training output.

“Juddy told me a few years ago that if you have 100km or 200km left in the legs, do you want to spend those doing all of this extra training and running? Or do you want to spend them playing?” Miller said. “Hearing that for me was a bit of a turning point.

“I want to play this game for as long as I possibly can. Instead of doing the gut running, I have the leeway to go and do the work in the gym.

“You’re still working hard, it’s just in a different way. A lot of people have told me that I’ve been here for a long time and I have a few credits in the bank.

“I’m doing enough to make sure that I’m confident going into games.”

The forwards talk structure and then finish with some shots on goal. Miller nails a few bananas from the pocket. It’s a lighter session given the Dockers will be on a flight the following day.

Miller’s final day of pre-season started with a homemade coffee and avocado toast.

She isn’t due at the club until mid-morning, so she’s booked an early appointment with a podiatrist.

Be it additional health services, recovery or pilates, most AFLW players invest in their physical and mental wellbeing outside of contact hours so they’re at their best on game day.

On her way into the club, Miller drops by draftee Holly Egan’s house who is recovering from ACL surgery. She has moved in with fellow interstate draftees Georgie Brisbane and Evie Parker and the trio live a stone’s throw from Fremantle’s Cockburn base.

“They are honestly so funny,” Miller said. “I love chatting absolute s**t with them outside of footy.

“It’s so different hanging with the girls outside of football compared to in here.

“You have passing conversations, but the day is so packed with different bits and pieces, it’s really nice to have that time outside of the club to connect with the new girls.”

The bond the Dockers’ girls share is evident that afternoon at the club.

In the lecture theatre after lunch, coach Lisa Webb introduces milestone players Kiara Bowers and Gabby Newton who are both playing their 50th games against the Power.

The club’s media team has edited together videos for both, largely consisting of glowing well wishes from their teammates. The biggest laugh is reserved for O’Driscoll whose chaotic personality translates on camera.

In the gym, qualified strength and conditioning coach turned AFLW forward Megan Kauffman offers the players technique tips and advice.

The players flow through the different stations, deadlifts, bench press, barbell lunges and power cleans, hi-fiving and logging their reps after each set at iPads placed around the gym.

O’Sullivan takes charge of the playlist, a mix of pop hits and hype tracks.

Fremantle’s resident therapy dog Winnie, owned by Head of Wellbeing Angie Bain, roams the gym with a stolen tennis ball, looking for a fetch partner.

On the far wall, the Dockers have mounted a chalkboard that proudly displays male and female records in various lifts.

Gym finishes early, meaning more free time for the players to snack and strap.

Defender Madi Scanlon quietly reads a book, given she’s recovering from an ankle injury and won’t train.

New recruit Bella Smith leads a game of NBA 2K.

The players discuss the merit of North Melbourne coach Darren Crocker publicly declaring premiership player Vikki Wall would miss selection in round one after spending the off-season playing Gaelic back home in Ireland.

A rendition of Wheatus’ ‘Teenage Dirtbag’ breaks out in the kitchen as players refuel with toasties and protein shakes.

Miller spends most of the hour in the treatment room with the physios, getting both ankles and ring fingers strapped ahead of training.

“I get a bit of pre-training treatment to keep on top of everything so I can train to the level required,” Miller said. “I do spend a bit of time in the medical room, but it’s very relaxed.

“We love to chat, often not about footy. You can switch off a little bit. It’s time to reset before training.”

Even though her teammates are at that exact moment getting great glee out of Miller’s fiery West Perth past, her standing amongst the group is undeniable.

The 29-year-old captained the Dockers for three seasons before Ange Stannett took the reins last season, a controversial call at the time given she had been ruled out of 2024 with an ACL tear.

But Miller swallowed her pride and remains in the leadership group alongside defender Ash Brazill, Newton, O’Driscoll and Aine Tighe.

Fremantle has engaged former Olympic hockey player Fiona Ryan (nee Boyce) as a leadership consultant for the 2025 season and before any other players arrive at the club, the group conducts the Dockers’ weekly leadership meeting.

“She helps direct us into what our overall goal is for our group, both the leadership group, the individuals within the group and the group within the club,” Miller said. “She’s big on beliefs, thoughts and actions.

“Coming into this year, we wanted to be able to challenge each other a little bit more within the leadership group, but also challenge the playing group as well.

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“We explore why we react a certain way to a situation and we want to get to the root cause of it and then what actions we can implement to respond.”

Deadly time, a relatively unstructured 15-minute block focusing on ball skills, pre-training muscle activations and opposition analysis fill the gaps on a busy Thursday. The nervous energy and excitement ahead of round one is undeniable.

The Dockers, and Miller, can rest assured knowing they’ve done everything in their power to prepare for season 2025.