Matildas star Katrina Gorry in tears over teammates’ act
Footballer Katrina Gorry broke down in tears as she recalled a touching gesture from her Matildas teammates during the World Cup.
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Katrina Gorry broke down in tears as she recalled a touching gesture from her Matilda’s teammates during the 2023 World Cup.
The emotional moment came during a sit down interview with news.com.au to discuss her recently released memoir, Katrina Gorry: A Matilda’s hero’s story of football, motherhood and breaking down barriers.
In the book, Gorry, 32, writes about battling an eating disorder, having a child on her own through IVF, and of course her stunning Matilda’s career which has seen her play more than 100 games for Australia.
In one of the most moving parts of the book, Gorry shares a story about what happened in the changerooms before Australia’s quarterfinal clash against France during the 2023 World Cup.
Gorry was a bit distracted before the game due to an upsetting phone call she’d received from her partner, Clara (who was in Sweden), two days prior.
“She said, ‘it’s about my dad (Peter) … he’s had a heart attack and died,’” Gorry told news.com.au.
“I just couldn’t believe it,” the Matilda’s star said as she started crying.
Gorry hadn’t shared the heartbreaking news with anyone, but decided to tell one of her teammates in the rooms before the quarterfinal.
“ They obviously informed the staff what had happened and all the girls just rallied behind me,” Gorry said.
Unbeknownst to her, the Matilda’s players made a snap decision to honour Clara’s dad, Peter.
“We were in the changerooms and everyone put black arm bands on for him and I just turned around and realised, this is a team. It was a really special moment,” Gorry said.
That wasn’t the only special moment of the night.
The quarterfinal against France ended up going to penalties after each team failed to score during the match.
It was 4-3 France’s way when Gorry was called up to take a penalty.
If she missed, Australia would have been out of the World Cup.
“I had him (Peter) watching over me in that moment,” Gorry told news.com.au about the penalty kick.
“It was dead silent in the crowd, I can still feel it right now, I can see the grass moving,” she said.
Gorry ran in, kicked the ball, and smacked it into the back of the net.
As the Brisbane crowd erupted, Gorry ran back to her teammates and kissed a piece of tape that was strapped around her left wrist.
News.com.au asked Gorry what the significance of the tape was, to which she replied, “I had his (Peter) name on my wrists”.
The Matilda’s went on to win the match against France but lost to England in the semi-final, finishing fourth in the World Cup.
In Gorry’s interview with news.com.au, the star footballer also spoke about how her parents reacted when she told them she was gay, what is was like to miss a crucial penalty during the 2016 Rio Olympics, and how she overcame her eating disorder.
You can watch the full interview in the video player at the top of this article.
Katrina Gorry: A Matilda’s Hero’s Story of Football, Motherhood and Breaking Down Barriers is out now.
Originally published as Matildas star Katrina Gorry in tears over teammates’ act
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