Freshly selected to her second Australian Olympic Team for the Paris Olympics, Matildas’ midfielder Katrina Gorry, or ‘Harper’s mum,’ shares how motherhood redefined the game for her, both on and off the pitch.
Making her national team debut in 2012, the midfield maestro has become well-known for pulling the strings, orchestrating game-changing chances and scoring match-winning goals.
It’s almost ironic that, “Mini,” as she is affectionately known, has one of the most commanding presences on the pitch, while standing at 155 cm. She even claimed the title of both the highest number of tackles (59) and the most ground covered (58 km) during the Matildas electrifying FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023™ campaign.
Although her national team career has so far spanned 12 years, Gorry’s journey has been anything but linear. Through the highs of motherhood and the lows of mental health challenges, Gorry is a true picture of resilience.
Openly sharing her struggles with an eating disorder, she reflected on the times she would avoid looking at herself in the mirror and the period where she didn’t know who she was, or if she even wanted to play football anymore.
“It was incredibly hard. I think as an athlete, you always feel like you can overcome anything. For me, I was so stuck for three or four years,” Gorry shared about her mental health battles.
“When I look back on photos you can just see that I was really, really struggling. Some days I couldn’t get out of bed and there were other days that I didn’t want to do life anymore.
“I’m just lucky that I can look back now and feel really grateful that I was able to get myself out of it. I was so lucky that I had my family and psychologist there to really help me figure out, how I got there and how I could get out of it.”
For Gorry, motherhood has been a transformative journey—one that has reignited her passion for the game and brought newfound purpose to her life. Welcoming her first child, Harper, into the world in 2021 through IVF, was soul-healing.
Gorry’s mum, Linda, described Harper as the missing puzzle piece in Katrina’s life, providing a fulfilment she’d never seen before.
“Pregnancy pretty much changed it all for me. I had so much more appreciation and respect for my body and the amazing journey it was taking me on,” the West Ham international said.
“When Harper came into the world, she gave me a reason to live and a reason to change what I was doing. She made me fall back in love with the game, in a way that I hadn’t felt for many years and gave me another reason to play.
“You always play for your family, but I think when you have a little one around, you’re always trying to make them proud. There are definitely times you feel like you want to quit, and they look at you and give you another reason to go out there and do the hard work and make sure you get to these major tournaments and get to share those moments with them.”
Since returning to the national team set-up with Harper by her side, Gorry has also become known as a bit of a “camp mum” to the younger girls in the squad.
“I’ve definitely become way more nurturing, I look out for the younger players to make sure that in any environment, they feel safe and they have the belief and confidence to go out and do what they need to do,” she shared.
“I think it’s made me more of a leader in that sense and changed my whole mentality around the way I play football, the way I am around football. Now, I’m so appreciative of every little moment, because, when you look through their lens, time goes so quickly.”
Harper has become a favourite of not only Gorry’s Matildas teammates, but also the Matildas’ fanbase. Travelling with both the national team and West Ham, Harper is an unofficial mascot for both teams.
When the Matildas announced their squad for Round Three of their Olympic Qualification series, Harper Gorry took centre stage, reading out each player’s name.
Fans and media went wild to the point where any further squad announcements receive hundreds of comments asking, “Where is Harper’s version?”
When asked if she could’ve predicted the love for Harper by Matildas’ fans, Gorry laughed, “No, not at all.
“When I bought Harper into the team environment, I knew how much I loved her and how much the team loved her, but I could never have imagined how much the fans would love her.
“Nobody really cares about me anymore, it’s all about Harper. It’s the same at West Ham” she laughed again.
“But seeing all the comments wanting Harper to do all the announcements, it’s definitely really special for me. Knowing how much everyone else has fallen in love with her.
“That’s just the type of human she is. She loves people, she loves the national team, she loves the girls. And it’s really so special for her to be a part of that environment and for her to feel that sort of love as well.”
Gorry’s journey is evidence of a societal shift within the world of women’s sport, as more women embrace motherhood and no longer need to choose between being a professional athlete or starting a family.
“It’s absolutely incredible to see the change over the last couple of years,” Gorry said.
“We were very lucky that the national team were really supportive straightaway. I always thought that I’d have to hang up the boots, to start a family and that was my priority at the time, but to know that there are so many athletes coming back now and sharing their story, it’s just truly inspiring.
“It’s a nice environment to have the kids around and to also have them be around inspiring women all the time. It gives you another reason to push yourself to make someone else proud. It changes the whole game,” she continued.
“Seeing clubs and national teams being supportive, I think it’s going to keep people in the game longer. It’s going to push the game further and it’s so nice that we’re now having these conversations and things are starting to change.”
Recently welcoming her second child, Koby, through fiancée Clara Markstedt, Gorry says that the experience of pregnancy and motherhood has added some extra weapons to her arsenal. As she prepares for the Paris 2024™ Olympics, she is keen to harness them.
“What you go through, the pregnancy, labour and everything, you find a newfound strength within you, and I think it shows on the field when you’re playing,” she explained.
“You come back a better athlete, your body’s stronger, your mind is stronger and now more than ever, I don’t want to leave this Olympics without a medal around my neck.”