Moving to Sydney without your family would scare most teenagers but Caitlin Wallace says “it’s not as hard as it sounds”.
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For one, modern technology means she’s in contact with her parents on a regular basis and living with a wonderful family in Collaroy as she chases her soccer dream also helps.
On top of that, Wallace said she didn’t have a lot of time to worry too much.
“I don’t have a lot of spare time as I’m always training or doing homework and focusing on my studies,” Wallace said.
Wallace – who has ambitions of one day playing for the Matildas – trains with the Narrabeen Sports High Football Academy along with the Manly United Football Club.
Some days she’ll trains multiple times before playing matches with Manly United on Sundays in the tough under 15s women’s premier league.
Despite the weekend matches being so tough, Wallace is loving the challenge.
“Manly United welcomed me with open arms and took me in as part of the family,” Wallace said.
“It’s been amazing. All the players are really nice and we have all bonded together which makes playing together easy as we know each other's strengths and weaknesses.
“The competition is hard but we have strategies to overcome it.”
Making the move to Sydney hasn’t been the only big moment to happen for Wallace over the past 12 months.
In May, the teenager was selected in a Sydney FC side to represent Australia at the One Nation Cup in Japan.
Wallace played teams from South Africa, Germany, Japan and China amongst others on the tour.
The former North Companions player said the trip was incredible and inclusive – both on and off the pitch.
“The One Nation Cup was an amazing experience with countries from all around the world coming together to play soccer and learn new things about how each country play,” Wallace said.
“I really enjoyed interacting with the other countries and trying to communicate with them.
“I also enjoyed when we were bussed with the South Africans and on the way to our location. They were singing in perfect harmony and so we tried to join in and learn their songs.”
Of late, Wallace has been focusing on her one-on-one attacking play.