The field was bathed in the golden glow of a late Sunday afternoon in March, like a beautiful curtain closing on the season from hell. The small but rowdy home crowd was on its feet clapping as the 16 GWS Giants players congratulated the victors then made their way o the field in Blacktown. The spectators were louder than normal. “They were seeing what we were feeling,” recalls captain Alicia Eva, “unbridled, fearless football.”
Bruised, scratched, hearts broken and tanks empty, they had lost to Carlton and missed going through to the finals by just one point. It’s a sporting cliché for a reason, but they had left nothing on the field.
Inside the change room, they huddled in a group, still wearing black armbands in mourning of their teammate. They slung their arms across one another’s shoulders like a chain holding them together physically and emotionally, and reflected on an extraordinary 12 months marked by death, injury and a season thrown into chaos. They were heartbroken but proud. It had taken grit, but they had made it.
This story is from the November 2022 edition of Marie Claire Australia.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the November 2022 edition of Marie Claire Australia.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
WHY WOMEN SHOULDN'T BE DISCOUNTED
Four game-changing women share why they want economic empowerment included in the conversation this International Women’s Day
home HAVEN
Sophie Bell, founder of Peppa Hart, invites us into her calming quarters, writes Samantha Stewart
BEHIND THE SCENES with PETER PHILIPS
An intimate backstage moment with the legendary creative and image director for Dior Makeup
MIAH MADDEN
The Australian actor on her biggest fashion crime, party tricks and the women who have shaped her
TAYLOR SWIFT
As she hits our shores in February, music writer Cameron Adams charts the unbelievable career of the world’s biggest music artist, from her Nashville country music roots to her record-smashing Eras tour
The road to NIRVANA
Editor Georgie Abay lands in the remote Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan for the adventure of a lifetime
makes SUN sense
What if we saw a suntan for what it really is: a visible sign that skin has been damaged? Sherine Youssef looks behind the golden facade
RUNWAY to DEBT
Modelling agencies are ecruiting young people who have fled war-torn African countries and are living in extreme poverty. They are flown to Europe to take part n fashion castings, but some return within days or weeks, often laden with debt
CALLUM TURNER
The British actor shares tales from the front line, why you should play your heroes and his love for Free Willy
ALL ABOUT JESS
Chart-topping Australian singer Jessica Mauboy talks love, lonliness and music legend Whitney Houston on the eve of her new release, Yours Forever