Training has just finished at City Vista Recreation Reserve in the western suburbs of Melbourne and you immediately get a sense of what Jess McDonald brings to Western United.
The cameras are ready and the scene is set but McDonald has one more important task to complete following a gym session before sitting down to talk – distribute cookies to the coaching staff and her team-mates.
“I feel I almost bring that mum presence, being the only mum on the team,” McDonald tells KEEPUP as she prepares to farewell Western in Hobart this weekend at the conclusion of her guest contract.
Ask any athlete and they can tell you all the sacrifices they have made to play professional sport. For Western’s FIFA Women’s World Cup-winning striker, she has travelled across the world – without her 10-year-old son – to be part of the club’s inaugural Liberty A-League journey.
There is no sugar-coating the challenges it has brought.
“A lot of people have asked me ‘oh, isn’t it nice to be kid-free?’ – I’m like no,” the 34-year-old, who has two goals in eight appearances this season, says.
“I don’t think anyone understands like, my little buddy is 10 years old. That’s my little best friend.
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“I feel out of my element outside the football field, so when I go home I’m like this is weird. I don’t like spending time away from him but I know my job is crucial at this time of my life and he understands that, which puts my mind a little more at ease.
“Being his primary caretaker, it’s amazing to have the support system I do have so it makes me a little more comfortable to go. He is also at an age that he understands my job and this is only temporary and not forever.
“It’s definitely been teaching him patience but also knowing mummy’s job is not going to last forever. I only have a little bit of time doing what I do. But I’m making the sacrifice for us. I have to break things down a little bit for him, almost talk to him as an adult so he can understand a bit more. He is just like, okay.
But obviously there are a lot of days where he will text me and be like, ‘I miss you, I’m sad today’. I’m like, I’m sad too buddy and miss you as well but I will be home soon, so hang in there.
“Just trying to keep him happy from literally half away around the world is hard most days.”
McDonald – a three-time National Women’s Soccer League champion – is using that experience, on and off the pitch, to help Western in their first Liberty A-League season.
For many of her teammates, it is their first taste of football at this level; McDonald was brought in from NWSL outfit Racing Louisville on a guest contract to nurture the competition’s newcomers.
“This is really my second year in my career playing this type of role. Bringing experience and my leadership,” McDonald says. “I almost feel like an assistant player because I’m on the field with them and it’s been amazing to be able to kind of help coach them on the field.
“‘Hey Robes [Emma Robers], stay in this half-pocket of space, just stay there. You don’t have to move, you’ll get the ball eventually’. We switch it out, bang, it gets into Robes, she turns and we’re breaking lines.
“I definitely have to say it’s been a really cool role because I did the same thing with Racing Louisville in the United States. We have the youngest team in the league.
“Here we are, one of the younger teams and new squad, it’s been a learning curve for me because I know they’re looking up to me, so I’m like ‘okay I’ll take on this pressure’. I’ve had a bit of experience coming into Western, kind of knowing of what to expect of myself and being able to help the girls out on and off the field.
They turn to me about issues or even good things in life. Things we can relate to. I feel I almost bring that mum presence, being the only mum on the team. I definitely play that leadership role and I think I do it pretty well, so I’ll pat myself on the back for that.
‘You tell them, Jess!’
Sitting down underneath the grandstand at the home of Western United women’s team in Caroline Springs, McDonald speaks passionately and proudly about the club’s remarkable 2022-23 campaign.
Western – just months into their Liberty A-League journey – won their first seven matches of the season before coming unstuck against in-form Western Sydney Wanderers.
Still, Mark Torcaso’s side are top of the table by two points as they prepare to host Brisbane Roar at North Hobart Oval in Tasmania on Saturday.
As McDonald lauds her teammates, head coach Torcaso makes a brief cameo.
“It was absolutely amazing and very impressive, honestly as a group, an organisation since we’re the new kids on the block,” says McDonald, who was part of the United States’ triumphant 2019 World Cup squad.
“To be honest, I didn’t know what to expect coming into this because obviously it’s a brand-new team. It was a really good feeling. By game three and four, we’re like okay what’s happening? Okay, well alright we’re going to run with this because we know we’re actually good.
One thing I wanted to inspire the group was to run with this underdog mentality because we really are at the end of the day. The record may not show it but being a new team at the professional level, it’s a very difficult thing to come by.
“I’m just really proud of this on how we’ve responded this season. It’s been really impressive.”
Torcaso, lurking in the background, then yells: “You tell them Jess!”.
‘It’s like watching your own child growing up’
Western are reaping the rewards of their close partnership with NPLW VIC juggernaut Calder United – a pathway established from juniors all the way through to the A-Leagues.
Those foundations were laid years before this season’s Liberty A-League introduction.
Western head coach Torcaso and players Alana Cerne, sisters Adriana and Melissa Taranto, Emma Robers, Julia Sardo, Aleks Sinclair, Natasha Dakic, Alyssa Dall’Oste, Stacey Papadopoulos, Raquel Deralas and Harriet Withers all arrived from Calder.
They were all at the heart of Calder’s championship-winning campaign in 2022 and are now either key or contributing to Western’s Cinderella story this term.
There are also players within the Western squad with limited experience at A-League Women level or elsewhere.
“Just watching them improve,” says McDonald as she discusses what has stood out with Western. “It’s almost like watching your own child growing up. From pre-season until now. We look at the twins even, Mel and Age (Taranto), getting in certain pockets of space where we’ve been needing them.
“Just watching all these young girls develop the way they have has been nothing short of amazing.
“It’s actually been really fascinating to see each and every person on this team improve each week.
“That was another thing I had mentioned to the group – this is all about the process. We can’t even look into the future yet until we go through each day to get better and better. Add a little bit more to your tank and then when it comes to game day, we’re emptying our tank. That’s exactly what everyone on our squad has done and shown on the field.
It’s been really impressive for them, because we have some teenagers on this team. We have early 20-year-olds. Some girls were born when I was in high school which makes me grow more grey hair but that’s okay.
One player that has stood out is American goalkeeper Hillary Beall.
On loan from Racing Louisville, just like McDonald, Beall moved to Australia for her first taste of senior football and the 23-year-old has impressed – starting all eight of Western’s games.
“She’s an absolutely incredible goalkeeper. I’m happy to see her play and build her own confidence here,” says McDonald, who was a talented and successful basketball player in college but opted for a football career.
“She’s playing a leadership role for this team, even though she is young and kind out of her element but she’s been handling it real well.
“I can’t wait to see her continue to do big things and show her talent on the world stage.”
