I grew up playing football in the backyard with my older cousins feeling just like one of the boys, where the size of my kick mattered rather than the size of my body. As I got older and continued playing footy, a heavily male-dominated sport at the time. I soon realised that the size of my body actually might matter – to other people, at least. 

I first started playing footy at Beaconsfield Football Club in Under 11s where I was the only girl playing in a team full of boys. I noticed from a young age that the boys I played against were always too scared to tackle me – I’m not sure if it was because I was a girl or because I was small.

Throughout junior football Dad coached my local footy team, often receiving comments about me like “give her the Macca’s award every week” or “just feed her cheeseburgers to fatten her up”. While being a small player didn't feel like a personal weakness to me, the comments that people made regarding my size greatly hindered my confidence. It felt like others viewed my size as a weakness on the footy field, so I pushed myself harder as a player to prove them wrong.  

In 2014, I played in the national carnival in Canberra, playing for VIC Metro at 14 years old. Naturally, I was the smallest player on the field, playing against the likes of Sabrina Frederick and Tayla Harris. As most of these players were around 17-18 years old, they were more accomplished, experienced and taller than me. Personally, this was a truly intimidating and daunting experience at such a young age. Although the experience itself was overwhelming, I found myself to be more nervous about my size playing against the bigger girls, rather than the level of football I was playing. 

The following year in 2015, I was again invited to the VIC Metro try-outs. I have vivid memories of travelling to the first session with my Dad and bursting into tears on the way there. Mum and Dad were the ones who always pushed me to compete in representative squads. Others would focus on my small size, and question whether I was too small to be playing elite level football. But my parents could always see my potential. My parents had put so much time into my football, I was upset because I felt an innate sense of pressure of not wanting to let them down.

The overwhelming experience from the previous year occupied my mind and I felt I was too small to compete at such a high level. The enjoyment I once received from the game was lost, along with my confidence. After discussions with Mum and Dad and their full support, I decided to take the year off state football and revert to my local team, in hopes that my confidence and love for the game may soon return. That same year I focused extremely hard on my tackling and defensive skills, which soon benefited my overall game.

When 2016 came around I had grown in more ways than one – I had grown a bit in height, as well as confidence. For the next two years, I continued to play state football for VIC Metro/Country. My newfound inner belief was supported by my good mates Maddy Prespakis and Tyla Hanks, who were always amazing footballers and shorter in stature. I enjoyed playing with these girls and felt really comfortable around them as they affirmed my football ability and gave me a sense of belonging.

You can read the rest of Georgia's story on Part Timers Media now.