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Opinion

From doting mum to Matildas star, the remarkable story of Michelle Sawyers

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Roar Guru
14th March, 2022
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Only 220 women have been privileged enough to represent the Matildas over the last 43 years, but Queenslander Michelle Sawyers is part of an even more exclusive club.

Along with Teri McQueen, Donna Fredrickson, Shelley Youman, Heather Garriock and Melissa Barbieri*, Sawyers is one of only a handful of women who officially pulled on the Green & Gold after giving birth.

Now aged 61, as she eagerly anticipates the 2023 World Cup coming to Australia and New Zealand, Sawyers reflects on her own remarkable career which overcame several obstacles.

Sawyers was officially capped 13 times for Australia, and was cap number 46. She actually played 25 games in Matildas’ colours overall, with a number of matches not recognised as ‘A’ internationals.

All of these games came after she gave birth to her first two children, with her official debut coming on 12 December 1987 in a 2-0 win against Canada in Taiwan at the Women’s World Invitational Tournament (a prelude to the Women’s World Cup). She was actually Australia’s Player of the Tournament in Taiwan.

 
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A defender who spent her entire career for Ipswich based club Coalstars SC, Sawyers also represented Queensland and was a team manager when the Matildas played in their first ever World Cup in 1995 in Sweden.

In 2013, she was honoured with selection in the FFA International Team of the Decade for 1979–89. Sawyers’ defensive skills were one of the best in the country, with her ability to convert defence into attack quickly instrumental to Australia’s success during the 1980s.

“I first toured with the Australian National Team in March 1983 in Honolulu, Hawaii. I can’t remember the teams we played or how many games or the results,” recalls Sawyers. “I never realised that my first ‘official’ cap was in 1987.

“The most rewarding thing playing for Australia was the opportunity and privilege to represent my country. I’ve met some great people along the way and to be able to see the world and experience different cultures was amazing.

“We, my husband Steve and I, had our first two children quite young. Our daughter was born in October 1977 and our first son was born in October 1980.

“I started back in training in January the following year and from there played for Qld until 1992.

“I was made shadow player for the Australian team after 1983 until getting back in the final squad in 1987. I think this may have been the tour to Taiwan with Fred Robins as the coach.

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“The year after the World Cup in 1995, when I went away as a manager, I had our second son. I coached our local junior girls until he was two, but then retired altogether from soccer commitments as Steve and I had started a ‘learn to swim’ business in 1992, and it was getting too hard to coach and run the business too.”

While insisting that playing for Australia was incredibly rewarding, Sawyers admits there were tough times that she had to endure, with Steve also a high performance athlete who represented Australia.

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It was a time when athletes often had to pay to play for Australia, and Sawyers’ story was reminiscent of a number of Matildas players of that era.

“The biggest challenge after having the kids would definitely have been the financial side of things,” recalls Sawyers. “My husband Steve was also repping Queensland and Australia in amateur freestyle wrestling at the time so money was always tight, as we both picked sports that weren’t funded in any way shape or form.

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“Steve was a fireman and I worked casual jobs in between training and raising the kids. We held many car washes, lamington drives and petrol raffles!

“It was always a bit of a juggle with getting to training and games but luckily our training nights were mostly opposite each other, and I’d take the kids to most of my club games as my Dad was the coach and all my teammates were very supportive and helped too.”

Sawyers is grateful for the support she had, paying tribute to her husband and family for providing a solid network.

“When it came to going on tours I was very fortunate to have a great network of babysitters with my hubby, my parents and parents-in-laws. I would never have done what I did without them.”

These days, thanks to the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) signed between the Professional Footballers Association and Football Australia in 2019, Matilda players have more support during pregnancy and when they have children. Though the level of support is not yet at the level desired by the players, it is a far cry from when Sawyers’ played.

Sam Kerr kicks.

Modern Matildas stars like Sam Kerr can thank Michelle Sawyers for blazing a trail. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

Katrina Gorry, who gave birth to baby Harper last August, was recently selected in the Matildas Asian Cup squad that went to India. The 29-year-old had to turn her spot down though due to the excess requirements of Covid restrictions.

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Gorry though had a solid season for the Brisbane Roar in the A-League Womens, and would be in with a chance of regaining her spot in the Green & Gold, with Sawyers backing her fellow Queenslander to get back into the team ahead of the 2023 World Cup.

“In relation to the maternal leave for the players now, I’m supportive of it,” she said. “Let’s face it, a woman has a limited time in their life to safely have children.

“So not having to wait till they retire from sport in their late 30’s early 40’s and have a child due to money issues could be beneficial.

“I think Katrina Gorry has a great chance of bouncing back to full fitness to go on and playing for Australia again.

“You just have to love the sport and have a great support team behind you. I was lucky enough to have both.”

*There may be other players that have played for Australia after having kids that are unknown.

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