Ghungalu woman Ally Anderson will have her name imprinted in the Aussie Rules history books this weekend as the Brisbane Lions midfielder joins two other AFLW stars in becoming the first players to reach the 50-game milestone.

The 27-year-old joins the likes of VFL/AFL pioneer and fellow Lions player Joe Johnson, who was the first recognised Indigenous player in the game and the first to clock 50 matches — from 1904 to 1906. 

Six years in the making and having played every Lions match to date, Anderson joins Brisbane teammate Emily Bates and Adelaide's Ebony Marinoff in reaching the achievement.

"It's quite a surreal sort of feeling knowing that I'm here six years later and I'll be one of the first players to reach this milestone," Anderson said.

"I remember when they announced they were going to have a professional league. Around that time we really didn't think it would be for another five years or so, but they suddenly made it happen.

Anderson was drafted to the Lions in 2016 ahead of the inaugural AFLW season in 2017. 

She recalled her excitement and nerves ahead of Brisbane's first AFLW match when they ran out against the Demons in Melbourne, and said the feeling will be much of the same for this Sunday's milestone against the Kangaroos in Maroochydore.

"The memory that really sticks with me from back then isn't necessarily my first game but two nights before it, when we had our captains run before travelling to Melbourne the next day," she said. 

"We'd finished training and we came inside and on the TV was the first-ever AFLW match between Collingwood and Carlton. 

"The first thing you noticed was this huge crowd, more than 20,000 people at this game, and I just remember feeling goosebumps watching and I thought to myself, 'wow, we're about to play on this stage as well and it's going to be on TV just like this'. 

"On the Sunday when we ran out against the Demons it certainly did live up to that surreal experience I imagined it to be — filled with so much nerves and excitement. The best part was driving into Casey Fields on the bus and seeing all the people show up for us.

"I don't think it's quite sunk in yet but as this weekend's game gets closer it will be much of the same feelings."

Similar feelings will be shared by Bates, who has accompanied Anderson every step of the way to 50 AFLW matches. 

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After 10 years of playing alongside and against each other at the local and representative levels, Anderson said Sunday will mark a special occasion that they'll get to share together in the Lions jersey.

"We become close friends ever since we were drafted to the Lions," Anderson said.

"It will be really nice sharing that moment with her after so many years of coming up against and playing alongside one another."

The occasion will be made just that bit more special for Anderson with the Lions suiting up in their Indigenous round jersey, given they spent last weekend on the road. 

Anderson, who designed this year's jersey, said she expects it to give her an extra spring in her step just as last year's Indigenous jersey designed by teammate Dakota Davidson did.

"I remember running out in the Indigenous jersey last year and it was by far my best game of the season," she said.

"It just felt like a new energy that I was running out in. 

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"So that feeling of being united as one — from the playing group to the staff, to our families, our supporters, our sponsors, our community — that's really what I tried to represent this year."

Aside from designing the Lions 2022 Indigenous jersey and the AFLW Indigenous round logo, Anderson has also taken it upon herself to further educate her teammates about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people's rich culture and history.

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Ahead of their 2021 premiership-winning campaign, Anderson in the pre-season engaged in weekly cultural sessions with the squad, an initiative that was brought back in the 2022 pre-season. 

"Just like a lot of workplaces do cultural education sessions or cultural awareness training, I was keen to do something similar for our team — not just a one-off thing though but something we incorporated on a weekly basis throughout our pre-season," Anderson said. 

"Essentially I just wanted to share and educate the team on really amazing parts of our culture that everyone could embrace and also share in their own circles.

"Some of the things we've talked about are, the stolen generations, the difference between an Acknowledgement and a Welcome to Country, what totems are and what they mean. I've also brought in different artefacts and Ochre and we discussed the different things they're used for.

"I love doing it and the team really enjoy it. It means a lot to me that they all really embrace the things we talk about and want to know more.