Fremantle Dockers player Dana Hooker.
Camera IconFremantle Dockers player Dana Hooker. Credit: Supplied/Martin Kennealey.

Fremantle Dockers star and ‘supermum’ Dana Hooker honoured as nominee in WA Young Achiever Awards

Lauren PilatWanneroo Times

BEING a role model the next generation looks up to fuels AFLW footballer Dana Hooker to continually push herself to be better – both on and off the field.

Through motivation and hard work, Hooker has been recognised with countless titles and awards – the latest as a nominee in the WA Young Achiever Awards.

The Alexander Heights resident has played the sport for 12 years and was nominated for the Surge Fitness Sports Award, recognising her list of achievements.

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As a single mother who was back playing on the field less than two months after giving birth to her daughter Alice in June 2016, Hooker was dubbed a ‘supermum’ and an inspiration to women in sport.

The 27-year-old occupational therapist trained during whatever spare time she had when Alice was asleep and her mum could watch her with the hope of being picked in the national draft.

After five games with the Coastal Titans, Hooker was drafted by the Fremantle Football Club and went on to become the club’s Best and Fairest in 2017 and part of its leadership group.

The former John Septimus Roe Anglican Community School student said her busy sporting and working life didn’t leave much socialising – especially while in season – but she wouldn’t have it any other way.

“I’m fortunate to have good support from my family to be there for Alice when I can’t with training and game day,” she said.

“It’s been about finding a good balance between it all and really enjoying having all these things going on at the same time.”

Proud to have been nominated for the award, Hooker said it was a testament to the hard work she put in to get to where she was now and looked to the next generation for motivation just as much as they did towards her.

“It’s a privilege and exciting to see all the young talent coming up and when they’re looking up at you asking you for feedback and trying to model their game on yours, is pretty exciting and I take a lot of pride in that,” she said.

“It always fuels you to always be better when you’ve got the next generation coming along to push you and I use that as a bit of motivation.”

Hillarys resident Kaitlyn Wilson was also nominated for the WFI Insurance Small Business Achiever Award for her creative therapies business Muuse that she built on the premise that creativity is for everyone.

“Muuse, at it’s core, is all about using creativity to strengthen your mind and heal through creative practices,” she said.

“Muuse allows participants to understand mindfulness practice and harness it in a safe and forgiving environment.”

Category winners will be announced on Thursday, March 22 with finalists presented and winners announced at an Awards Gala Presentation Dinner at Pan Pacific Perth in May.

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