Ava Usher

Ava Usher (born 11 August 2007) is an Australian rules footballer with the Gold Coast Suns in the AFL Women's (AFLW).

Early life Usher was born in Cairns, Queensland and grew up on the Gold Coast from the age of two after her family relocated back to their hometown in Currumbin. She attended Hillcrest Christian College throughout her upbringing and became a National representative in basketball, swimming and surf lifesaving throughout her adolescence. In 2019, one of her school friends and future Suns teammate Sunny Lappin convinced Usher to begin playing Australian rules football She subsequently signed up to play club football for Burleigh in the years that followed and joined the Gold Coast Suns Academy at 11 years of age.

In 2023, at 15 years of age, Usher was awarded the best and fairest award at the under 16 national championships for her outstanding performances for Queensland as a bottom ager She impressed so much in 2023 that many scouts believed she was capable of playing in the AFLW at 16 years of age before tearing her ACL on the eve of her 2024 bottom age season. Along with football, Usher continued to play basketball for her school and was Hillcrest Christian College's top scorer in their 2023 under-17 Australian National Schools Basketball Championship win.

AFL Women's career Despite her ACL injury requiring 18 months of recovery, Usher was drafted as an academy selection by the Gold Coast Suns with the seventh pick in the 2025 AFL Women's draft, matching a bid from .