By OkayGoal
Northern Ireland captain Simone Magill says becoming a mother has changed how she sees her own career. The Birmingham City striker now regards football as her job rather than her identity. Magill gave birth to her first child, daughter Skye, in May and is working on her return to the game. She spoke about the change in an interview with BBC Sport NI published on Friday.
“Football will always be a large part of my life but it’s very much what I do, not who I am. Ultimately, I’m Skye’s mum and, to me, that’s the most important thing.”
The forward argued that elite players are too often defined by sport alone. “I think we get labelled as athletes, and that is our complete entire identity,” she told BBC Sport. Since Skye’s arrival, she said, there has been “a massive shift”, and she described being a mum as “the highest title that I will ever have”.
She did not pretend the adjustment has been easy. “It’s hard and it can be overwhelming, but it’s the greatest joy that I’ve ever experienced in my life,” Magill said. She added that family is now her priority and that it is “so nice” to have “that greater purpose”.
Her standing in the Northern Ireland game is long established. Magill made her senior international debut at the age of 15 and has spent 16 years in the sport. She was part of the side that reached the country’s first major tournament and later took the captaincy.
That record gives weight to her central message. In her view, motherhood and a professional playing career do not have to compete. “You can be a mum and a footballer,” she said. “They can co-exist.”
Few senior players in the women’s game in Northern Ireland have spoken this openly about returning after childbirth. Magill’s comments come as she tries to get back to her best at club level with Birmingham City.
Her focus is now on paving the way for others off the pitch as well as on it. She intends to do that as both Skye’s mother and her country’s captain.
