Cairns seemed to loosen the Freedom ladies up. After stepping off the plane and getting our gear into the hotel rooms, we headed to the field to play our hosts the Cairns AFL Womens team. As you read from Nikki’s report it was a tough loss. But, we played well and we kept improving as the clock ticked on.

Game 2 was like taking our first couple of steps. We played an even tougher team than the Sydney Shamrocks, called the Cairns Bombers, but after some adjustments by the coaches and some post-game/pre-game pep talks, we certainly began to capitalize on our strengths and exploit the weaknesses of our Aussie counterparts.

As with most things in life, one must crawl before walking. Game 1 of the tour was a testimony to this. The first quarter was quite staggering, and the Sydney Women’s football team (the Shamrocks) not only gave us a wonderful introduction to how footy is truly played [where the sport originated], but they also broke many of the preconceived notions about what it takes to be a quality footballer.