Father-daughter recruit Charlotte Simpson will make her AFLW debut this Saturday night against Gold Coast, while Paige Trudgeon and Rene Caris will also line up for St Kilda colours for the first time.

The trio have pieced together impressive pre-seasons in the hunt for a Round 1 berth, with senior coach Nick Dal Santo confirming the good news in the lead-up to Saturday’s game.

A contested and tenacious midfielder, the 19-year-old Simpson joined St Kilda as an overage recruit via last year’s AFLW Draft, piecing together a prolific campaign which netted her the Geelong VFLW Best & Fairest and VFLW Lambert-Pearce Medal to further her push to a senior berth.

Simpson faced several hurdles in her path to the highest level, most notably battling through a cyst on her ovary before undergoing successful surgery.

Meanwhile, Trudgeon and Caris will take the key defensive and ruck reins respectively after arriving at St Kilda as part of last season’s Trade Period; Trudgeon after 21 appearances for Carlton and Caris 17 between Geelong and GWS.

The pair each impressed during the club’s two pre-season hit-outs against North Melbourne and West Coast, with a call-up in red, white and black capping off their hard work.

“This time of year is always exciting with the season about to commence, especially with three first-time players joining us for Round 1,” EGM AFLW Tessie McManus said.

“All three have worked incredibly hard to make it to the highest level, in particular Charlotte who will play her first senior game this Saturday.

“Paige and Rene have been terrific additions to our playing list and will play important roles as we push towards our best season yet.”

St Kilda’s full line-up for Round 1 will be confirmed this evening at 6:20pm.