Sammy Murrell: The 2023 World Cup heroes that I didn't have
"Growing up in a rugby and cricket-mad Southland household in the early naughts meant that I almost never watched women’s football."
Sammy Murrell is a former New Zealand Junior Football Fern from Southland who now lives in the United States after playing and studying at Havard University. Murrell has joined The Tribune team as a columnist for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
After a thrilling win over Norway and a heartbreaking loss to Philippines, the Football Ferns are heading down south to Dunedin this weekend to play what will be one of the most important games in New Zealand football history.
A win against Switzerland on Sunday will secure a spot in the knockout rounds, while a draw will leave their fate in the hands of the Norway v Philippines game. Group A is so closely contested that a loss will see the end of their groundbreaking run at this tournament.
New Zealand’s third 2023 World Cup fixture is an opportunity of a lifetime for the Football Ferns, who left everything on the field to earn those three points against Norway and are on the brink of a second historic achievement–making it out of the group stage–within a week of their maiden World Cup win.
But this game isn’t just about the 23 players on the Ferns roster.
The 90 minutes of football that will unfold at Forsyth Barr Stadium on Sunday is also an opportunity of a lifetime for every young player who has an inkling of a dream to wear the fern one day.
I can’t say how attending a Women’s World Cup game as a young player would have impacted my own trajectory in football.
I don’t recall a specific event or person that sparked my aspirations to represent Aotearoa on the world stage; I just know that the fire was already burning by the time I finished primary school.
For some players, going to a World Cup game could be the deciding factor in the choice to play football for fun or to work towards becoming a future Fern.
Growing up in a rugby and cricket-mad Southland household in the early naughts meant that I almost never watched women’s football. I had zero control over the TV remote whenever there was an important game on, which meant that my sports viewing on weekends was usually made up of All Blacks, Southland Stags, and Black Caps games.
The only women’s team I watched consistently was the Southern Steel, back when they were the Southern Sting.
I think my family’s passion for sport made up for my lack of exposure to women’s football games. My parents–both athletes themselves in their heyday–threw every sport I was interested in at the wall to see what would stick. I started playing football when I was five and while I tried a few other sports over the years, my love of the beautiful game endured.
With no professional women’s team in Aotearoa at the time, no Ferns games within driving distance, and minimal control over the TV remote to look for games to watch, I had limited opportunities to find role models in my early playing days.
I had a Ferns poster on my bedroom wall and would tell anyone who asked that my favourite Fern was Rosie White, because we wore the same jersey number (13). As for local heroes, I always wanted to be like Mary Fraser—who is doing Southland proud at the World Cup as a Teams Services Coordinator—because I admired her drive and attacking prowess.
My role models were a product of random associations (a jersey number spotted on a poster) and proximity (also being from Southland). This home World Cup, with games close by in Dunedin and TV coverage in our time zone, is an opportunity to help the budding footballers in your life find their heroes.
So if you can make it to Dunedin on Sunday, the New Zealand v Switzerland game kicks off at 7:00pm at Forsyth Barr. If you can’t make it, try to catch the game on TV.
For some youngsters, watching the Ferns (and the other 31 teams fighting for World Cup glory) this winter will be the spark that ignites a lifelong passion for football. No matter the outcome, New Zealand v Switzerland could be the game that sets them on a path to taking the field at a World Cup one day.
You can read more from Sammy over on her Substack, Murrell of the Story