Gold Coast youngster Heidi Talbot has celebrated another milestone in her young footy career, representing her Torres Strait Islander heritage during her first AFLW Indigenous Round.

The proud Ait Koedal woman featured for the Suns against Geelong on Sunday, continuing a journey which began in Far North Queensland and included a first year on an AFLW list without playing a game.

Talbot was born in Cairns before spending several years living on Saibai Island, where her mother is from.

She later returned to Cairns and began playing footy with the North Cairns Tigers at seven years of age, while also competing in hockey, athletics and cross country.

By her early teenage years, Talbot had decided she wanted to pursue football at the highest level.

"I think I wanted to be an AFLW player when I was about 13 and my dad pushed me to be able to get there," Talbot said.

"My dad has helped me a lot along the way and guided me down the right paths.

"He's an inspirational person and an epitome of what hard work looks like."

Talbot progressed through the Suns Academy system but her development required plenty of sacrifice. She regularly travelled between Cairns and the Gold Coast before eventually relocating south, moving away from family and friends to give herself the best opportunity of reaching the elite level.

Her performances for both the Suns Academy and Bond University put her firmly on the draft radar despite a shoulder injury disrupting the end of her draft year.

"Being drafted meant a lot, all the work I'd put in finally paid off," Talbot said.

The shoulder would cause further frustration after she joined Gold Coast, with another setback ultimately ruling her out of the 2025 AFLW season.

Although it meant that Talbot had to wait until 2026 to make her long-awaited senior debut, she said the extended period on the sidelines taught her lessons beyond football.

"I learned a lot about patience, and trusting the people that you're working with," she said.

"I've learned a lot about the mental side too and to journal and a lot of resilience, because it was tough."

Suns vice-captain Meara Girvan, who had experienced her own shoulder problems, became an important source of support during Talbot's rehabilitation.

Fittingly, Girvan later presented Talbot with her jumper ahead of her Round 1 debut.

"It felt so cool to know that I put in the hard work, had lots of setbacks, to then now actually play and live the dream that I was chasing," Talbot said.

Despite losing to the Cats, her first Indigenous Round has added another special chapter.

Talbot's name features on Gold Coast's 2026 Indigenous guernsey alongside the club's other past and present First Nations AFLW players.

For the 19-year-old, the round also provided an opportunity to share more about her culture with teammates and the wider football community.

"To share your culture with other people is pretty cool," Talbot said.

"I think people know the surface level but when you actually explain a few things they are really interested."

Geelong 10.4 (64) defeated Gold Coast 8.9 (57) at People First Stadium with Djadjawurrung woman Georgie Prespakis playing a starring role for the Cats, finishing with 33 disposals, nine tackles and eight clearances.