My experiences as Nationals player competing in the Girls Academy over the past 1.5 years have been amazing! There have been so many things that have happened, but I really want to focus on the competition, how our teams’ unique culture allows us to be successful, and what pushes us to strive for more.

Battles with Tophat

Year after year, the competition in the GA keeps getting better. We’ve met some really tough teams during league play and showcases, but none more challenging than Tophat. Over the past year and half, our team has encountered Tophat three times. The first was during the Champions Cup Final in 2022. Both teams battled, but in extra time we scored the golden goal making it 4-3 for us to win the game. It was amazing, but we knew if we played them again, they would be more than ready for us.

A few months later, we matched up against them in the U14 GA National Final, which was the most important game of the season for both teams. They had the motivation of wanting to beat us after losing in Champions Cup and we had the motivation of finally being able to win a national championship after losing in penalties the year before. Both teams were very determined, but our teams’ ability to push through the hardest and most stressful parts of the game allowed us to come out victorious.

Coming into 2023, both teams were playing very well and seemed to be on a collision course to match up once again. In this season’s Champions Cup, both teams overcame every challenge in the knockout rounds. We sought to retain our title from the previous season, but Tophat was seeking revenge and was at the top of their game. Fortunately, despite going down in the first half, we were able to push and score two goals to become back-to-back Champions Cup champions.

Tophat is a really special team and a great club with a history of producing top-tier players. It’s been an honor playing against such competitive teams and I have a lot of respect for the intensity they – and other GA teams – bring to each and every game.

Using Setbacks as Motivation

To be a successful team you need people who are willing to put in the work and stay determined even when it is difficult. Fighting with my teammates to win a title is one of the biggest highlights of my life, thus far. The feelings of happiness and relief were so overwhelming in the best way. It felt even better after having come up short the year before. In a weird way, I am thankful for the pain of losing because without that extra motivation I don’t know if we would have been able to be as successful.

Our team chemistry is truly unique. I believe the reason why our team is so successful is because of the relationships we have with one another and how committed we are to the team. Even in some of our lowest moments, whether at training or after losing a game, we pick each other up and focus on the future and don’t dwell on the past. When we lost the national championship, it was very upsetting.

Going into the next season, we used the unfortunate result as motivation and set out to make it our new mission to treat every game like the national final. Everyone took this mission extremely seriously and made it their top priority anytime we stepped on the field. With that mindset, we were able to come out on top and replace the feelings of anger and sadness with pride and joy. I’ll take pride and joy over the anger and sadness any day of the week!

The Nationals Way

Even after some success our team isn’t satisfied and still wants more. Last year, we did what we set out to do but what is our new motivation? This is a question we ask each other all the time. What is going to push us to be the best of the best? One of the greatest parts about our team is coming together when it is most important. With all of the great teams in the GA, we know it’s going to be hard, but why stop with just one national title?

We’ve met some of our goals, but we continue to tell ourselves we aren’t done and aren’t yet satisfied. We still have a lot more to prove. Our team always wants to be able to give 100% all the time and doesn’t want to settle for just ‘good’ – we want to be great. That means training hard, studying the game, and learning from our mistakes.

These experiences are some of the reasons why I’ve really enjoyed being a Nationals player and a part of the GA. I’m looking forward to many more memories made with my teammates in the future. Hope to see you on the field soon!