SHE’S A very supportive girlfriend, but you won’t find Molly O’Hehir wearing a Western Bulldogs scarf in the rooms after an AFL win.

With partner Ryley Sanders playing AFL for the Dogs, Melbourne AFLW defender O’Hehir often finds herself in enemy territory when supporting him.

While she’s of course proud of Sanders, the former No.3 draft pick’s heart beats true for the red and the blue.

“I don’t put a Dogs scarf on… It’s a bit weird when I have to go into the rooms, especially when they [play] Melbourne I, like, hide my face. But it’s nice to be able to support him in what he does and what he loves,” O’Hehir said.

“I go to the footy every weekend to support [him], which is really nice.

“It is weird at times but it’s kind of nice to have him at a different workplace because if he was at the same one it could get a bit interesting. But it’s cool. It’s nice to have another team to support - but obviously I only support them in the men’s!”

O’Hehir’s burgeoning career at the Dees was a big part of Sanders’ decision to turn his back on a lucrative offer to return to his native Tasmania.

"Definitely the idea of it was compelling in terms of the team that won the minor premiership wants you, which is always nice, but it probably didn't really make sense, like my partner Molly is a Perth girl and we'd probably been dating for six months or so then. It didn't feel fair to leave her here and ruin her season," Sanders told AFL.com.au earlier this year. 

With O'Hehir hailing from Western Australia, she and Sanders have helped each other through the homesickness that comes with moving across the country at a young age.

“We live together now and we’ve got our own little dog so it’s a nice little Melbourne family. It makes me feel like I have a family away from home,” O’Hehir said. 

“He’s made me feel so comfortable and also helped me find my feet in Melbourne. 

“He’s struggled with homesickness being from Tasmania so he gets it and understands how I might be feeling sometimes and knows how to support me in the right way.

“Ryley and I don’t really talk about football unless it’s something we’re upset about or happy about… It’s just nice to keep that out of our relationship and not revolve around football all the time.

“He’s so supportive and caring and understands when to leave me alone and when to wrap his arms around me.

“It’s nice to have someone that just gets it and understands.”

Having a strong social circle around her has also helped O’Hehir acclimatise to a new city and its weather, with the Demons’ drafting team striking gold in its 2024 haul.

“I’ve made really close friends with Amelia Dethridge and Maggie Mahoney,” O’Hehir said.

“It was funny, Todd [Patterson, former Melbourne recruiting boss] drafted us and we all just seemed to get along like a house on fire. We’re a really cute little trio and it’s so nice to have really good friends in Melbourne.

“[The move] was very different and it had its challenges at times, but I love the shopping and there’s lots of cool things to do in Melbourne. There’s always something going on. I do miss the beaches though and the warm weather. But it’s been really good.”

The Demons were the only team to seriously challenge all-conquering North Melbourne in 2025, falling agonisingly short in the preliminary final after leading at three-quarter-time.

“It was an amazing season and to get so close in my first year was really cool,” O’Hehir said.

“I’ve learned from all the other girls about how hard it is to get that far in AFLW so it’s pretty cool to do that in my first year.

“Last year was amazing, it was definitely a lot of learning like just trying to learn how to adapt to a professional environment and trying to use all the resources at the club, just finding my feet and figuring out what to do and what not to do.”

The 3-0 Dees have picked up where they left off however, not missing a beat in 2026 despite the off-season departure of inaugural coach Mick Stinear and subsequent installation of Tom Wilson at the helm.

Both O'Hehir and Sanders had big wins on the weekend, with Sanders' Bulldogs men's through to an elimination final after knocking Collingwood out of wildcard round, while O'Hehir's Demons AFLW side continued its hot start to the season with a commanding win over last year's Grand Finalist Brisbane.

The coming weekend, the pair will be supporting each other from opposite sides of the country, with O'Hehir's Demons in WA to face Waalitj Marawar on Sunday while Sanders' Bulldogs will travel to Adelaide to face the Crows in a do-or-die elimination final on Saturday night.

While it's a shame they can't be there in person, at least it solves the scarf conundrum.