Lyndsey Major-Booth addresses TCC girls before Confraternity Shield final

Former skipper Lyndsey Major-Booth was invited to speak to The Cathedral College footy team before their Confraternity Shield grand final on Thursday. She has now revealed the family connection that made it even more special.

Former team captain and Confraternity winner Lyndsey Major-Booth addressed this year's TCC team before their decider on Thursday.

An emotional pre-game speech from a former captain and spiritual leader helped inspire The Cathedral College girls’ victory in the Confraternity Shield grand final.

The team produced a spirited second-half comeback in front of a boisterous home crowd at Kettle Park to run out 26-16 winners against St James College on Thursday.

It was a memorable victory for the players and coaching staff but also for Lyndsey Major-Booth, who shared a prayer and addressed the players before the big game.

Lyndsey Major-Booth delivers her pre-game address to the players.

Major-Booth was part of TCC’s maiden Shield victory in 2022 and was co-captain last year when the team fell agonisingly short in the decider.

She travelled with a large contingent from Woorabinda to cheer on the team which included her cousin Rachel Oakley, who was wearing the number 10, the same as Major-Booth sported last year.

It was always going to be a special occasion for Major-Booth but it went to another level when coach Damon Moore asked her to talk to the girls before they took the field.

Lyndsey Major-Booth with the Woorabinda support crew.

She spoke about sisterhood, faith and the incredible bond they shared as athletes and friends.

“They’re all like my little sisters, I have played with all of them,” she said.

“It was great just to be that voice, to motivate them to go out there and play with heart… and to leave everything out on the field.

“I told them that they came together as strangers but they were leaving as sisters so they had to play for each other.”

Rachel Oakley and her cousin Lyndsey Major-Booth both wore the number 10 for The Cathedral College in their respective Confraternity Shield grand finals.

Major-Booth said it was incredible to see Oakley put in such a commanding performance.

“She was wearing the jersey I got to wear last year when I played in my last Confraternity Shield,” she said.

“I got very emotional seeing that.

“She dominated and owned that jersey.”

Selectors obviously agreed, with Oakley named in the carnival’s honorary Queensland team, alongside teammates Josie Wogand, Kayla Vella, skipper Manaia Faiumu-Malone, Charlotte McLean and Ellie Goodwin.

The Confraternity honorary team members from The Cathedral College - Kayla Vella, Rachel Oakley, Manaia Faiumu-Malone, Charlotte McLean, Ellie Goodwin and Josie Wogand - pictured with Queensland Maroons' legend Bob Lindner.

Major-Booth said TCC boasted some incredible talent and they all had “bright futures ahead” of them.

The 18-year-old is also forging a path to footy success.

She played this season with the St George Dragons in the Tarsha Gale Cup, the elite under-19 women’s competition in New South Wales and the ACT.

Major-Booth said her game had flourished in the high-level competition and is hopeful it will provide a stepping stone to higher duties.

Lyndsey Major-Booth embraces skipper Josie Wogand after The Cathedral College won the Confraternity Shield grand final.

She is now spending some time at home in Woorabinda before she and Oakley head to Samoa in September with the Murri Gummaz, an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women’s rugby league team.

The team has been invited by Samoa NRL to visit the country for the first time in a ground-breaking tour designed to showcase football talent and foster cultural exchange.

Major-Booth said it would be another opportunity to grow her game.

“I’m really trying to play at the highest level I can,” she said.