U18 rugby player to play in Ireland
Madelaine McCleery-Moodie learned she had no reason to be intimidated by Ontario’s top U18 rugby players.
The Peterborough Pagans U17 standout shied away from trying out for a provincial team last year.
This year, the 17-year-old Campbellford native decided to try out for her first provincial side and she made it.
Now she’ll step up her level of competition when Ontario tours Ireland Aug. 9 to 19. The five-footsix, 140-pounder plays wing or fullback.
“I was going to try out last year but I don’t know why I didn’t. I got really intimidated,” she said.
She said her parents John Moodie and Julie McCleery as well as her coaches encouraged her to try out.
“They thought I was good enough so I thought this is the year to do it. I didn’t know what to expect when I got to the tryouts. I didn’t know if the girls were going to be extremely skilled and I’d just be there and not know what was going on. I didn’t do that bad.”
She went through four tryout sessions between early May and last Sunday in Brantford, Peterborough, Whitby and Markham. She found out Monday night by email she had been selected.
“I thought I had a good chance. I was skeptical of making the AAA team but the AA team I thought I had a chance. When I got the email I was quite surprised and very grateful to make the AAA team,” she said.
“I was freaking out. I was surprised at first but I did work very hard so I’m glad they noticed that.”
She learned a lot about herself through the tryouts and became more assertive on the field.
“I learned that I had to be more vocal. All the girls were trying to make it to the AAA team and if you’re not vocal it’s really hard to get noticed,” she said.
“I had to make sure they knew I was there so I was always an option to pass to. If I do get passed to then I get to show my skills.”
The team will gather each Sunday to train before a four-day camp in Guelph prior to leaving for Ireland. They’ll play games and train while overseas.
“It’s extremely exciting,” she said. “I’ve never been to Europe and barely out of the country. Being able to go to Ireland is really big for me.”
McCleery-Moodie started playing rugby in Grade 9 at Campbellford District High School.
She won her team’s MVP award in her first two seasons helping the Flames win a COSSA AA/A gold medal in Grade 9 and a bronze in Grade 10.
Following her Grade 9 year, and at the encouragement of her high school coaches, she joined the Pagans and last season was MVP of her team.
Another Pagans girl, Suzanne Assheim-Sorenson, was named to Ontario’s U17 roster as captain. She has played for Ontario before for both 15s and 7s teams. Ashley Challinor was named a reserve for the U18 team.