Learning Curve Continues For Rising Soccer Star by Jeremy Ruane Around about this time ten years ago, Rachel Doody was one of numerous youngsters, with parents in tow, forming an orderly queue at Mt. Albert-Ponsonby AFC, where junior registrations were taking place for the forthcoming soccer season. Like all seven-year-olds, she was as keen as mustard, and couldn’t wait to start kicking a ball around with her friends down at Anderson Park, the home ground of her local club. Little did she know that the ensuing decade would see her develop into one of the country’s leading women’s soccer players of her era. In the last week of February, the footballing career of the Marist College seventh former scaled its latest peak, as Doody was named in a twenty-strong squad to represent New Zealand in Tonga in late April, at the inaugural Oceania Football Confederation qualifying series for the FIFA Under-19 Women’s World Championship of Football. "It was amazing", said the bubbly seventeen-year-old of her feelings when opening the letter which confirmed her selection. "The whole process began over a year ago, and for much of that time, I wasn’t too sure if I stood much of a chance. photo copyright NZ Soccer "Over the year, a number of tournaments took place, and I was very fortunate to be named Player of the Tournament at the conclusion of some of them". After being named Young Player of the Tournament at last season’s National Women’s Soccer Tournament in Auckland, Rachel collected the Player of the Tournament award at the Under-19 National Tournament, then was selected by this writer as the NZ Under-18 team’s best player over the course of the Quadrangular Women’s Invitation Tournament last September. "Once I had received these honours, I

thought I might have a good chance of being selected, but in order to be certain, I knew I needed to keep up the work I had been putting in to improve my game. Thankfully, those efforts have paid off". After a few years at MAP, then down the road at Metro, Rachel transferred to Lynn-Avon United at the start of last season, and it’s been the best move she’s ever made! "I’ve really enjoyed it at Lynn-Avon - it’s been a great learning curve. Winning the Premier League at the end of my first season at that level was a tremendous feeling, while playing alongside, and learning from the likes of Amanda Crawford, Yvonne Vale and Terry McCahill has really helped me improve as a player, as has Gary Jenkins’ coaching". Rachel isn’t certain what the long-term future holds for her at present. "I want to achieve an ‘A’ Bursary this year, and perhaps study something to do with Sports Management at university, but in terms of my football, which I really want to keep up, I can’t rule out considering a soccer scholarship in the USA at some stage". Meantime, there are no prizes for guessing what’s foremost in her mind. "It’s going to be very exciting, being part of the inaugural Under-19 Women’s World Cup competition. There’s another huge learning curve in store for all of the squad. "Personally, I’d like to try to secure a place in the starting line-up, and keep performing to as high a standard as possible, as well as endeavour to continue to improve myself as a player". The winners of the Tongan tournament qualify for the Under-19 Women’s World Cup Finals, which take place in Canada in August. Doody