For the past six days, Adelaide AFLW captain Chelsea Randall has been “living on Cloud Nine”.

Last Friday, October 27, Randall and fiancee Marijana Rajcic (former Crows defender and current assistant coach) welcomed their first child, Tomi, into the world. 

What’s followed has been, by her own admission, the most special time of her life, navigating the ups and downs of parenthood.

Couple that with the responsibility of leading the Crows into a sixth AFLW finals campaign, and there has been no busier time in her life.

But when speaking to AFC Media, Randall said she would not have it any other way.

“It’s been amazing, we’re living on Cloud Nine at the moment and have soaked up every moment of these past six days,” Randall said. 

“Becoming first-time parents, it’s hard to put into words how special it has been for us, but navigating our new life has been super exciting and we have been overwhelmed with love.

“It’s certainly been a very busy time for us as a family, but we have loved taking on that challenge together.

“Tomi has been a little trooper, MJ has been a champion and having the win on the weekend with my teammates has been the cherry on top of a very special week.”

Like the challenges Randall faces on the football field, the early stages of parenthood is something she has taken in her stride. 

She said the feeling of finally having a child has been “surreal”.

“The start to life as a parent has been surreal to be honest, we walk past the bassinet with Tomi sleeping and just pinch ourselves that he is finally here and I’m a Mum,” Randall said.

“All we wanted was a healthy baby and to have Tomi join our family. It's been such a blessing, and I’ve loved every minute so far. 

“In terms of adapting to parenthood I haven’t had too much time to think about it, I’m just taking every day as it comes and enjoying spending time with Tomi and MJ.”

Just 48 hours after Tomi’s birth, Randall had to quickly switch back to football mode, as her Crows faced North Melbourne in a crucial top-four clash at Norwood Oval.

She revealed her mindset leading into the game and how she managed to overcome a less than ideal preparation.

“What you have to do as an elite athlete is be able to put the highs and lows of your life aside for a small period and go out and perform,” Randall said.

“I didn’t have ideal preparation, playing a game of footy 48 hours after Tomi was born, I didn’t have too much sleep and hardly ate at all, so I was a bit shaky before the game to be honest.

“But it was great to be out there on Sunday at Norwood Oval in such a big game, with my teammates and in front of our fans.”

Keeping with the theme of her weekend to that point, the Crows produced a memorable three-point win over the Kangaroos, capping a perfect weekend for the Skipper. 

After quickly celebrating the win with her teammates, all she wanted to do was get back to the hospital and share the win with her family.

“It (the feeling) was just relief when that siren went, to pull off a win like that, against a very strong North Melbourne team was awesome,” Randall said.

“Then for me, I just jumped in the car and went to go share the win with MJ and Tomi in the hospital, which was such a special moment for us.

“Unfortunately Tomi didn’t sleep well that night, so I didn’t get any sleep either, but it was still a great day.”