When Kaitlyn Ashmore arrived at Hawthorn, she was an established winger and forward.

By the time she finished her inaugural season at the club, the 31-year-old proved she was capable of pinch-hitting in defence as well.

She told Channel 9’s Women’s Footy that the new role added another dimension to her game.

“I wanted to come in and work on my pressure,” Ashmore said.

“Coming on the wing, it’s hard to get those tackle numbers up. That’s what I wanted to work on for the season so I’m really happy with that.

“I’ve played a little bit different to what I have the past couple of seasons and I just enjoyed my footy which helped a lot.

“I really liked helping down back as well. It shaped my game.”

Ashmore’s versatility proved to be a game-changer, leading her to averages of 12.2 disposals, 8.8 kicks, 5.2 tackles, 191 metres gained and 2.8 marks.

She also managed a top-five finish in the club’s inaugural AFLW best and fairest count despite missing one game for the season.

But Ashmore isn’t focused on individual accolades, she’s focused on making the Hawthorn family proud.

“The fans can be really excited about where we’re going,” the winger said.

“We looked at our games from Round 1 to Round 8 and the improvement we made was incredible.

“We played 30 girls, all the girls on our list, and the different combinations we were able to form from that were exciting.

“Our fans were incredible as well, we had so many fans messaging us and just congratulating us for the year. It just shows what an incredible club and fans we have.”