When Marissa Callaghan ties her football boots on Mother’s Day she’ll be lasered focused on the training session at hand. As many other mothers enjoy breakfast in bed this mum will be keeping the celebrations to later as she continues to prepare for the biggest sporting challenge of her career to-date. Such dedication is a hallmark of the Northern Ireland football captain’s career and has led her to making history with her squad as they head to the Women’s Euro 2022 finals. But ahead of Mother’s Day she also has an inspiring, important message for the next generation of female sporting stars – being both mother and top athlete is possible. Marissa said: “It’s so important for women in sport to know that if they want to have kids it can happen. That women do believe it is possible to have kids and have a career in sport.” She added: “There are women of all ages who have gone away and had babies and come back. On our team we have Sarah McFadden, and she has a wee girl Harper, 5. She came back and played an international match three months after she gave birth. “It’s raising the awareness and telling the stories that it is possible so we can inspire the next generation of women in sport.”
Marissa in action against the Ukraine
Growing up in west Belfast in a time when an international women’s football side wasn’t even in existence, never mind a possibility, it’s little wonder the passionate player has become a role model for women in sport and for the next generation of female athletes. “I do take pride in inspiring the next generation of girls coming up,” said Marissa. “Football has given me so much in my journey, I love to show young girls that it’s a great sport to be in. But not just football but any sport – the life lessons you learn – you can’t put a price on it. “Football’s my passion and I just want to let young girls know that football is great for your mental and physical health. I don’t know where I would be without it.” However, despite great strides being made in sport the statistics show there is still work to do. A significant gap between men and women taking part in sport still exists, with women less likely to have taken part in sport at least once within the last year, 55%, than men, 62%. Unfortunately, according to Sport NI figures this gap gets wider on our sidelines with women representing just 19.5% of the overall sports coaching workforce in Northern Ireland and this dropping to just 10% for those who coach our World, Olympic or Paralympic medallists.
(L-r) Marissa with son Quinn,2, and her partner Paula
To help close this gap Sport NI recently launched their Women In Sport Panel that sees women from different sporting backgrounds offering their expertise on how to overcome barriers and create more opportunities for women and girls at all levels of sport. Marissa believes that listening to women and funding in sport are key factors in closing the gap. “It’s so important to listen to women from all levels of sport to be able to improve experiences and see what we can do better. This panel also gives visibility to women who are in sport, coaching, leadership, and governance levels. That is so very important for females to see these real-life scenarios and see that it’s possible to achieve these roles.” Marissa points to Angela Platt, Irish Football Association (IFA) Director of Women’s Football and Women In Sport Panel member, as an inspiring example. “It is very powerful to have a female in the director’s role and to have that role created for the first time, especially as football is still very male dominated,” she said. The Cliftonville player/coach, who is mum to Quinn, 2, seems to have found the enviable balance between family life and her job on the pitch. She’s quick to credit her supportive partner Paula and the recent funding from the IFA, sponsors, and the Department for Communities (DfC) for helping make that work – life balance happen. “In January we got fully funded to train professionally. So those who were working fulltime got put on secondment and are training up at Newforge (Sports Complex) fulltime,” she explained. It means that Marissa’s job as the IFA’s Girls’ Participation Officer has been put on hold until September, after the World Cup qualifiers next month and the Euros in July. “That has been a massive gamechanger for me.”
Marissa in action on the pitch
Not only is it allowing Marissa, and the rest of the women’s international team to concentrate on their game, but for the captain she’s getting precious time with her little boy. “I’m able to drop him off and pick him up at creche. We get home, make dinner and have normal family life. Whereas before we got the investment to go fulltime you were working in your day job and were out most evenings. My partner was doing an awful lot whereas now it’s nice to have that family time. “I’m fortunate to have a supportive partner there who understands what it means to play at this level. Obviously, we go away a lot so that can be tough. “But at the same time, I know that I do it for the love of the game – it’s my thing. For our Quinn, I just think it will be amazing for him to look back on. I know he’s only two now but at least I’ll have a great story to tell him. It’s better for him to believe he can do anything. “We as the women’s international team have made our dreams come true in what we have achieved. I think it’s important for him to see his mum achieve what we have achieved and hopefully that will inspire him when he’s older.”
NI fan Quinn watching his mum Marissa on the TV
As Quinn chats away in the background Marissa reveals he’s already showing some promise with his feet. “Quinn loves football. We have footballs of all sizes and shapes here. He’s ‘mama football’ and we play away. He does associate football with me so when football is on TV, he’s ‘mama, mama.’” As for now Marissa is the first to admit she’s “living the dream”. She has the Euros to look forward to and the World Cup qualifiers coming up against Austria, April 8, and England, April 12. “We’re solely focused on getting into that squad and getting the squad prepared for those big games. They’re two unbelievable sides and two massive games so we have to make sure we’re fully ready for it,” she added. “The momentum we’ve built here within the women’s game here is incredible. If you look back three years ago, we would have had maybe 50 people watching us play. Obviously off the back of our success and qualifying for the Euros there are over 10,000 tickets sold for the England game at Windsor. “It’s really hard to believe. I definitely think it’ll be an emotional day when we’re there at Windsor with that many fans. “There’s a lot to look forward to.”