2019’s best first year player, “inner Animal” of the year, clubman of the year, and a third-year player returning from injury walk into a bar…if that bar is the Emmaus St Leo’s Football Club in 2020.
Four important pillars of Animalettes footy in Rhiannon Stute, Tara Ingham, and sisters Sheridan and Shannon Harris, are returning for Emmaus St Leo’s women’s team’s third year. Stute, who unfortunately spent the better part of 2019 watching from the sidelines through injury, is hoping to surpass the four games she played and instead provide a vital part in her team’s year, on field this time instead of off field. After finally being able to confirm that she was coming back, it’s no surprise that one of the reasons is the sense of family and support. ‘The freedom I feel on the field, and the camaraderie for not only the girls on the team but the club are the reasons I want to come back.’
And those sentiments are shared by Ingham, who was named best first year player at this year’s presentation night, and “inner Animal” of the year Shannon Harris. ‘Emmaus St Leo’s has such a great group of girls who I’m proud to call my teammates and my friends, so that left no doubt that I’ll be back playing and training with the blue and blue next year,’ Ingham says, with Harris stating that she’s incredibly proud of the culture that has been cultivated at Emmaus St Leo’s, between all three teams. ‘I want to play footy again because it’s a place of belonging.’
For clubman of the year Sheridan Harris, along with both her sister and Stute who also played in both Animalettes seasons, being a part of the first women’s team has instilled in her a huge sense of loyalty, which only became so much bigger when she joined the committee and started contributing as a member of the communications team in 2019. ‘Growing up, footy has always been a huge part of my life, so being able to play for the last two years has been the best. There was no doubt in my mind that I’d be coming back to Emmaus St Leo’s for 2020.’
The coming season brings with it obvious intentions, with a flag believably on the horizon for all four women returning, but they know that it’s not the be-all and end-all. Stute hopes to get through the season unscathed and without injury, while the “inner Animal” herself hopes to add some more goals to her tally. But the underlying theme prevalent in the reasoning behind all four players returning is that they want to continue growing an environment that encourages women to play footy, whether they’ve played 100 games or 0, as well as building a strong foundation for the Emmaus St Leo’s women’s team for years to come.
For Emmaus St Leo’s in general, 2019 ended with the reserves men’s team taking home the silverware and it’s something that everybody who was there will remember forever, with the victory being a consistent favourite part of the year amongst most of the Animals faithful. Pre-season for all Animals officially begins on the 18th of November at home at Bennettswood Reserve, where quests for flags will undoubtedly start the only way those in the blue and blue know how.