Our students and coaching staff thoroughly enjoyed this wonderful and invaluable learning experience. SCAS Year 10 footballer, Sam Amini, revelled in the chance to learn from the experts in his soccer field “about what it takes to become a pro, the attitude, the mindset”. Sam is currently benefitting from his participation in the Iona Talented Athlete Program (ITAP), and says “Before I was making my own programs and trying to teach myself but now I’ve found weaknesses that I had no idea about and I’ve improved my game by targetting those weaknesses”.
We would like to thank SCAS parent, Mr Ian Jones, for making this opportunity possible. In Ian’s words “In these formative years it’s all about resilience, confidence and success, and who better to talk to our students about this than Emily van Egmond who has shown incredible resilience returning after a major injury”.
In January 2010, Emily was called up to play in the National Women’s Football team, the Matildas, for a two-match series against Italy, but was unable to play in either match due to an ankle injury. Emily says of the setback, “You need to re-evaluate and remember that nothing comes easy. Twelve months later I found myself at the World Cup, so it pays off”.
During the 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Germany, the then seventeen-year-old scored a goal to launch Australia to a 2–1 lead over Equatorial Guinea, and helped the squad win 3–2 overall.
Emily’s father, and the current Assistant Coach to the Matildas, stressed that hard work is the key ingredient. “In the 13-15 year age bracket everyone develops a little differently, so you have some that are tiny and some that mature a little bit early and the most important thing, regardless of size, is your technique”, he says.
Emily’s advice to all young aspiring athletes is “Work hard, follow your dreams and most importantly keep enjoying what you’re doing. Always have fun”. Emily enjoyed spending time with the students at SCAS, and was “delighted to see that all the students involved had smiles on their faces and were enjoying what they were doing”.
