Former AFLW star Moana Hope reveals shock split from wife

Former AFLW drawcard Moana Hope has left fans stunned after her shock news less than a year after the birth of her son.

Former AFLW player Moana Hope has reportedly split from her wife Isabella Carlstrom in a shock reveal less than a year after the birth of the couple’s second child.

Hope was one of the AFLW’s first big stars after a stellar career at state league level, including becoming the first woman to kick more than 100 goals in a VFL Women’s season in 2016, before playing a few seasons of the AFLW.

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But reports have emerged that Hope and her wife of four years had quietly separated, according to The Herald Sun.

Seven News reported that the rumour mill had been sparked after Hope changed her Instagram profile emoji from a family of four to a single parent with two children.

The pair had a daughter Svea, who was born to Carlstrom in 2020, while Hope gave birth to son Ahi in June last year.

Instagram gossip page Influencer Updates AU posted the update and wrote: “It appears @moanahope has confirmed break-up rumours by changing the emoji in her bio …”

Fans were blindsided, calling the potential news “really sad”, “shattering” and saying “I’m shocked”.

“Love is officially dead if this is true,” a fan said.

“These two were the real deal. This sucks. Mostly for their kiddos x,” another fan wrote.

Moana Hope and Isabella Carlstrom

Hope posted a video message on Instagram for Mother’s Day but didn’t mention Carlstrom.

“I’m one of 14 and growing up my mum also adopted some kids, so there was 19 of us living under the one roof. I lost my dad to cancer when I was 12,” she began.

“Growing up, I watched my mum go to work at night, come back in the morning and take care of us throughout the day. The resilience she showed is [something] I’ll never forget. As a mother of two, I don’t know how she did it.

“You are unbelievable, mum. I love you and that’s why this Mother’s Day I really want to celebrate you. You’re amazing, you’re my rock and we definitely wouldn’t be here without you, so happy Mother’s Day, mum.”

On a LiSTNR Podcast Dr Golly and the Experts released on Wednesday, Hope and Carlstrom spoke about their childbirth experiences.

Hope told the podcast that she believed she’d be single forever.

“When I met Belle, I thought I was going to be single forever,’’ she said.

“That was my plan. Because I was taking care of Vinny, my special needs sister. So I was like stuff it I’m going to be single. I never found the right girl.

“One of the things I made sure I asked her is do you want a family.”

Moana Hope and Isabella Carlstrom with their two children

Hope said that she struggled after giving birth as Ahi was not breathing when he was born and was treated for bronchiolitis.

It triggered a trauma response from her upbringing.

“I’ll give you an example, right, and something I’ve never disclosed. My dad was a very abusive man, really abusive,” she said.

“And that was a large portion of my childhood. And my anxiety got so bad that I thought I was going to wake up and inherit his anger.

“And so I always thought, I don’t want to be around my kids if I turn into my dad. What if I inherit? It’s just it’s post-partum is so emotional. Exhausting and can take over you like a ton of bricks. And it did for me. And so I was laying there going, if I wake up tomorrow and I turn into my dad, I don’t want to be around him because my dad was abusive. What if it makes me abusive? Not that I ever would. I would never, ever, ever, never. But that was the anxiety. But imagine.”

She added: “Everything triggered me, and it just made everything so much harder. And like, I just had moments where I felt like I’m not good enough to be your (to the kids) mum, I need to leave.

“It was about three occasions all up. I almost got in a car and drove away because I just felt like I wasn’t a good enough going to be a good enough mum for him. It was fear.”

Moana Hope was an AFLW superstar. Photo by Adam Trafford/AFL Media/Getty Images

Hope, who also starred in the Australian Survivor All-Stars series, played three seasons in the AFL including two for Collingwood and another for North Melbourne.

Hope had a stellar career at state league level before the AFLW, including becoming the first woman to kick more than 100 goals in a VFL Women’s season in 2016.

But she was delisted by North Melbourne after the 2019 season, and her focus became her family. After marrying in August 2019, the couple soon announced they were pregnant with their first child.