SARAID Taylor has done it the hard way. 

The former WNBL player took a huge gamble to give away her basketball career, having toiled as a development player for the Southside Flyers (previously Dandenong Rangers) for six years.

Friend and Giant Katherine Smith – who had played in Taylor's final year of junior basketball with Nunawading, in Melbourne's east – had often been in her ear about switching sports, while teammate and mentor Tessa Lavey had combined her WNBL career with AFLW after joining Richmond in 2020.

Taylor eventually took the plunge ahead of the second season of 2022, having kicked the ball for just 15 minutes with Lavey before her first meeting with the Tigers.

She'd come from a strong footy family – brother Ayce was on Adelaide's list as an SSP rookie in 2020 – and was a fervent Essendon fan, but basketball was always her first playing passion.

As a developing rookie, Taylor didn't play a game for Richmond that year, and was cut.

She entered the VFLW for the first time in 2023, lining up with the Tigers' then-affiliate, Port Melbourne, and her five matches were enough to give Melbourne the confidence to give her a chance as an injury replacement player.

Once again, Taylor didn't play an AFLW game.

But she had done enough during training and scrimmages to earn another contract with the Demons, making her long-awaited debut in week eight last year, coincidentally against Richmond.

And after three games in 2024, Taylor has played 10 of a possible 13 so far this year, only missing those three matches because of a mid-season hamstring tweak.

Now a firm fixture in Melbourne's backline, last Sunday marked Taylor's first AFLW final, with her second due this weekend. Despite her consistency this year, team selection is still an emotional experience.

"Whenever my name comes up on the board to say I've been selected in the team for that week, I don't take it for granted," Taylor told AFL.com.au.

"It's a peculiar feeling and there's never enough time to really process it because there’s a job to do. Like, I’m not sure if there was a moment [last] weekend to properly reflect on playing in an AFLW final. It all still feels a bit surreal sometimes. But it is so special to be able to play this sport at this level, especially with a group as strong as Melbourne's. I feel a lot of pride running out beside them.

"It's been an interesting journey, but my entire family have ridden it with me, and I’ve never been without their love and support. My parents, especially, have constantly poured so much of their energy and time into my sport, as a junior all the way through to senior level. Their belief in me is honestly impressive because I wouldn't describe my career as pretty. 

"Sport is tumultuous. It's brutal. And it's also a bit ridiculous - because you're either deep in the slog of it, or you might be briefly experiencing some personal joy, but there's any number of people you really care about in their own slog: battling through injury, or trying to be selected, or hoping to find a contract. So there’s never the luxury of simplicity."

Taylor is a deep thinker and an awarded writer, holding a bachelor of fine arts (screenwriting) and a debut fiction novel, 'Flinch', sitting in the editing process.

Her varied writing – inclusive of poetry, essays, memoir and fiction – has been published in platforms including Overland, Meanjin, Island and Griffith Review, and she is currently self-publishing an online newsletter, Thist.

Accordingly, it made sense to ask her about the cultures of football and basketball.

"The biggest difference I've found with footy is there are clearer roles. The best teams that I've been on, the happiest and most well-performing, have cultures where coaches define roles for their players, players work to execute that role, and if they're successful, it's celebrated by everyone," Taylor said.

"Sometimes I think team sport is really as simple as that.

"Since I was a little kid, I'd only known myself as a basketballer. I always felt loyal to my basketball aspirations, and I guess loyal to the code itself, and I was also very respectful of AFLW players – I genuinely did not consider crossing codes without any experience and acting as if I could match it with them.

"But it got to a point where I was pretty desperate. I wanted to be a professional athlete. I wanted to work hard and have it move me forward. I thought switching to footy was likely going to result in more failure, but I was willing to see. And then when I was offered an opportunity, it was about trying to make the absolute most of it."

Taylor's drive to improve has been complemented by working alongside a power of people at both Richmond and Melbourne, whether it's to improve her defensive craft and technique, or general game and situational awareness.

"I've been completely honoured to work alongside some of the most incredible players – who are not only talented but so selfless with their time. That was my experience when I first got to Richmond, during my time at Port Melbourne, and certainly now at Melbourne. I've been pretty lucky throughout my career in both sports to be surrounded by generous people. I really feel like I owe my career to every player and coach who has taken any chance to help me," Taylor said. 

"I could probably name everyone in our team as a source of inspiration – because it's the combination of how good they already are, but also how they constantly hunger to improve to achieve team success.

"That comes from our leadership. The way Mick (Stinear) and our staff have designed our program at Melbourne means we're very lucky with not only physical resources but emotional investment. Coaches buy into our development as players and people. It's about performing, it's about winning, but it's also consistently about helping to improve the person standing next to us."