Sport : AFL

Help when you need it most

08 September 2023

At Sports Chaplaincy Australia, we believe in the power of playing the ‘long game’. To inspire you, we want to share with you some stories of how far we’ve already come.

[AFL, VIC]

One of our women’s football chaplains, affectionately known as ‘Chappy,’ received a distressing phone call from one of her young players.

By day, Chappy works in the city, but her real passion is being there for her team. For two years, she’d been driving 35 km to meet with her players in the northern suburbs.

This player, a key member of the team, was seriously grappling with personal relationship troubles. She didn’t know where to turn, but she knew she could call her club chaplain for help with her anxiety and depression.

Chappy spent three hours with her that night, and this was just the beginning. They had regular catch-ups, phone calls, chats after training, and Chappy even helped connect her to professional support. The team’s coach, who was initially reluctant to get the chaplain involved now states “he won’t coach without her!”, fully endorsing the girls have regular check-in with “Chappy”. 

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