Six months ago, Jessie Rasschaert was busy balancing her football at Belconnen United, her job as a physio, and being the mum of a cheeky two-year-old, but now she can add a career as a Westfield W-League player to that growing list.
After having a stellar season which saw Belconnen claim the local treble once again, the defender was named the Capital Football NPLW Player of the Year after they conceded just four goals all season.
Today, she will make her Westfield W-League debut in front of her friends, family and Belconnen teammates against Perth Glory in the same stadium that brought her so much local success.
It has been a whirlwind 2019, even for Jessie.
“Antoni, my Belconnen coach, told me that I might get a call from Heather Garriock but I initially thought he was pulling my leg,” she said.
“Heather did ask me to trial for them and it has snowballed from there.”
It never crossed Jessie’s mind that she would be offered a professional contract with United, so when Heather told her that there was a contract waiting for her signature, she admits there were tears.
But with a small son and her wife Jenna expecting their second child in January, Jessie thought she would have to pass the offer by.
“Straight away I wanted to say yes but with an expanding family, I thought it would be too difficult,” Jessie shared.
“We spoke about it but I was in the mindset that I wasn’t going to be able to but with Jen convinced me that we can do this.
“It is an once-in-a-lifetime thing for me so I didn’t want to pass it up.”
Jenna said she was never going to let her wife miss the opportunity to impress on the national stage.
“She has worked so hard, she had trained so hard, always being receptive to feedback,” Jenna said.
“I would watch her games and she would always stand out. I thought she should have been in the W-League earlier.”
The decision has come with sacrifices for the couple, with Jessie forced to get up early to head to gym sessions to fit it around her busy schedule, while Jenna will stay at home looking after Tristan while Jessie travels with the team.
But it will all be worth it when Jessie runs out onto McKellar Park in United’s green jersey with her name on the back.
“This will be my first jersey with my name on the back, so that is a bit exciting,” Jessie said. “People can now buy a jersey with my name on the back, which is just surreal.”
