Irwin to make Magpie history
Rebecca Irwin will play her 100th senior women’s game for the Magpies.
By Rachel Williams
Scottsdale footballer Rebecca Irwin will make history when she runs out with the Magpies’ women’s team on Saturday, becoming the first female player at the club to reach the 100 game milestone.
Irwin, 27, will earn her place on the SFC honour board at Deloraine on Saturday after nine seasons with the club.
There’s been a broken collar bone, two challenging knees that need managing and the birth of two children along the way.
Her daughters Sadie, 4, and Trixie, 2, will be watching from the sidelines on Saturday along with her parents Michael and Catherine.
There will be a mix of nervous energy and excitement along with a huge sense of pride in her achievement.
“I always get excited before footy. I am kind of like a kid at Christmas on a Saturday morning,” she said.
“I do get nervous too. I didn’t know what to do with myself on the weekend because we had the bye.
“It is a weird thing to be the first to do something so there is definitely a bit of pride and it is nice that I have been there since the beginning.
“Being part of this club has ben really special to me. It is a really good club to play for and really supportive of the women.”
The ruck/full forward took up footy in Scottsdale’s inaugural season in 2017, playing four games with the club while also playing netball.
“I didn’t get to play in the premiership that year as they had a really big squad and I hadn’t played many games so in my second year I dropped netball and pledged myself to footy,” she said.
“I got to play in the Covid premiership year.”
The 100-game milestone was set to be made by club stalwart Alex Hall two weeks ago, before a significant injury against Launceston late last month forced her onto the sidelines to recover for at least another few weeks.
“It was sad for Alex not to be the first but you just never know what will happen,” Irwin said.
“You never want to get hurt but your love and passion for the game overrides the fear of getting hurt when you are out there.”
As a single parent and sawmill group leader with CMTP Branxholm, Irwin says the juggle to manage training and playing is real.
“It can be hard trying to organise everything but I have a lot of support from my mum and dad and Bridget Moore often helps look after the girls for me when I am playing so it is a real team effort,” she said.
She hopes to continue playing and, if all goes well with her body, continue for up to 200 games.
All four Scottsdale teams take on the Kangaroos at Deloraine on Saturday.
“It will be a tough game for us because they will be on a high after beating South Launceston by four points last week and South are quite challenging so we will put our best foot forward and hopefully come away with the chocolates,” she said.