Matildas star Emily Gielnik could have been a top referee
Emily Gielnik is a key part of a Matildas side surging towards a place at the Tokyo Olympics. But she could have had a quite different role on the pitch.
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She’s a W-League champion, an Olympian who played at an Asian Cup and a World Cup, but Matildas forward Emily Gielnik almost became a top referee.
The 27-year old prepares in Sydney for the Matildas road to the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, but as she pulls on the shirt for her country, she remembers her football journey also started with a whistle.
“It was another thing to do in school and another way to get out of the maths lessons,” Gielnik told The Daily Telegraph.
“I loved all things football. At the time I thought (refereeing) was a bit of extra chump change I could put in my pocket and also be around more of the game.”
As a young and hungry footballer who would do anything to forge a path to football stardom, algebra and scalene triangles took a back seat.
Football followed Gielnik wherever she went. During her time as a young girl at the Cleveland State High School, former NSL and A-League referee Paul Eldridge coached the Matilda through the schools referee program.
“He was one of my favourite teachers growing up and he got me into refereeing,” said Gielnik. “Sometimes I went to some of the higher level pro refereeing training sessions and got to see how in depth it could be.
“I could referee school games and then I was getting quite good and started refereeing some of the boys and mens games and through the local football club I was at, I ended up sidelining some higher level mens games as well.
Gielnik says if she could referee and play at the top level she would have, but it became an ultimatum that in her heart knew the answer to. While studying fitness, having a day job as a personal trainer, and an offer to play for Brisbane Roar at the age of 15, Gielnik could never say no to the sweet sensation of the ball at her feet.
“I was put in a position to choose,” said Gielnik. “They thought my refereeing could actually take off, I had an option to go to New Zealand to referee a tournament, but that wasn’t possible while I was playing football. It was an easy decision for me because football made me happy, not to say that refereeing didn’t, but I always had the ambition to play.”
“It was always going to be football.”
Ask some of the Football Queensland community, and they’ll tell you she would have reached the exact same heights with the whistle as she has in her playing career.
Lynda Arkinstall, who had a 15-year playing career and 20 years as a ref in Queensland remembers Gielnik as always wanting to be the best at sport. She always applied herself to everything, and could have gone the distance with the whistle.
“She could have gone all the way,” Arkinstall told The Daily Telegraph. “She could have been a ten-out-of-ten referee.”
Now, as she prepares to qualify for another Olympic Games, Gielnik thinks back on her time in the black shirt and remembers her unique football education.
“I do remember the black referee uniform for quite some time, even when I was done with it, I still hold onto it just in case I did want to do it again. I still get asked by the school these days if I want to jump in and do some refereeing. It’s still popping in and out of my life.”
“(After playing) I’d like to be involved in the team, I would want to be more involved as a player coach or a strength and conditioning coach.”