Mike Sheahan’s daughter Kate experienced her AFLW dream, even if for only 10 minutes

AFL media doyen Mike Sheahan writes how tears of joy for daughter Kate’s AFLW debut turned to tears of shock, pain and confusion.

MY daughter Kate rang me crying for joy at 5pm Friday. “I’m playing,’’ she blurted between sniffles.

Finally, she knew she was going to realise a lifelong dream to play football at the elite level after being left out of Collingwood’s AFLW team for the first three rounds.

Don’t tell anyone, but I think I might have shed a tear, too. Just the one.

HEARTBREAK: KATE SHEAHAN SUFFERS KNEE INJURY IN PIES DEBUT

Little more than 24 hours later, the tears were flowing again ... tears from shock, pain and confusion as she lay on a rub-down table in the visitors’ rooms at Whitten Oval, her left knee packed in ice, her career over with just one “handball receive’’ to her name from 10 minutes of game time.

Her mother, Janine, had warned me on the morning of the game she feared Kate would get hurt in what she saw as such an extremely robust arena. I sagely told her the threat of injury didn’t matter, that any damage would be superficial, anyway, that her daughter’s passion for the game was such, she was oblivious to the possibility of being seriously hurt.

Kate Sheahan hits the ground after suffering a knee injury. Picture: Michael Klein

In the end, the injury came when she simply fell over with the ball in hand as she changed direction trying to evade pursuers. It was as simple as that.

The rooms were like a morgue at halftime. The family was there, as were several close friends. As were Collingwood president Eddie McGuire and CEO Gary Pert and his wife, Andy, plus the doting Collingwood medical staff.

Whatever we outsiders might think of Collingwood, I couldn’t be more relieved to know that if my daughter had to fall while representing any club, I was happy it was Collingwood.

This was our dream Dad and we did it. It's didn't finish perfectly, but I made you proud and that's all that matters ❤ pic.twitter.com/7sPGLf3bns

— Kate Sheahan (@KateSheahan1) February 25, 2017

Ed consoled Kate and whispered to me: “She’s a Collingwood player now; we’ll look after her.”

Pert, himself a famous victim of fragile knees during his distinguished playing career, was both sympathetic and pragmatic: “It will be a tough 12 months, but she will learn from it.”

An hour before the game, I had been invited to present Kate with the No.24 Collingwood guernsey, the jumper she chose to honour her friendship with Sydney chief executive and former Collingwood defender Andrew Ireland.

Kate Sheahan is consoled by teammate Emma Grant after suffering the injury. Picture: Michael Klein

It was a special moment — I didn’t realise how special it would become — her dream was a reality and her teammates obviously loved her, such was their enthusiasm when she raised the jumper ... with more tears.

I have watched and/or covered roughly 2000 games of AFL football during the past 60 years; I had never been so heavily invested in one. That’s what blood does.

When Kate was drafted by Collingwood late last year, she declared it “the best day of my life”.

When she was reminded she had a husband and a son ... she paused, then gave a look that suggested “I’m not sure anything has changed”.

She has loved football from the cradle ... watching it, talking it, practising it, always lamenting that she and her fellow women had been unfairly denied the right to play the game that was so important to them.

I have watched proudly (and a little enviously) the sons of long-time family friends, the Powers and the Balls, playing with great distinction at AFL level.

The injury didn’t stop Kate Sheahan, or best friend Aussie tennis player Daria Gavrilova, from joining in the celebrations of Collingwood’s first AFLW win. Picture: Michael Klein

Luke and Sam Power played 425 games, Luke and Matt Ball played 240 games.

I always knew how proud their parents were, and understandably so. Now I know how proud — and demoralising — it can be to be as a parent, too.

Yet, no one can rob her of the joys of her four months at Collingwood nor can they rob me of the memories of Friday night’s phone call, of the jumper presentation Saturday night, of her six-year-old son, Will, running out on to Whitten Oval with his mum and his buddy, Mo (Moana Hope).

And, for an old journo, Saturday night provided a brutal lesson in how people’s lives can change in an instant.

I reported on lots of players and their disastrous knee injuries; I now appreciate the full impact of those injuries and how broadly they hit.

It was a sad night, Saturday night, but Kate Sheahan will be able to say she realised her dream; she played at the highest level ... albeit for 10 minutes.