The Matildas captain Sam Kerr has been given a new honour in her hometown and the football superstar admits she’s still trying to “wrap my head around it”.
WA Premier Roger Cook announced the newly built State Football Centre in the Perth suburb of Queens Park has been renamed after the Australian hero.
“I present for you the Sam Kerr Football Centre,” Cook said to rapturous applause at a celebration of football on Friday.
“”Yeah, it’s pretty crazy to be honest,” Kerr said on stage after the announcement.
“I haven’t wrapped my head around it but I’m a proud West Aussie, so yeah, this is up there with one of the proudest moments of my career.”
Kerr’s professional football career has drawn the adoration of a nation, endorsement deals and overseas contracts with the likes of English powerhouse club Chelsea.
And now in addition to her prized captaincy of our national women’s football team, the Matildas, Kerr can add another feather to her cap as one of the handful of sports stars to have buildings named after them.
“There’s just something different about coming home and playing in front of Aussie fans, we have that Aussie spirit that you can’t put your finger on,” Kerr said on stage.
As The Matildas get ready to play two more Olympic qualifiers in Perth next week, the WA government also announced a $9 million investment into the world game.
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Premier Cook said he wanted the next generation of football stars to play and train at the centre and be inspired to chase their own sporting dreams.
“In naming our new world-class facility after Sam, my Government hopes that her contribution to football and impressive legacy will continue to inspire our future Matildas and Socceroos and help grow the game locally,” he said in a statement announcing the news.
The $50.8 million facility, which was joint-funded by the State and Commonwealth Governments and is owned by the State Government, includes a two-storey grandstand, two competition and training pitches, and three five-a-side playing pitches.
“As a proud West Australian, I am incredibly privileged to have this amazing State Football Centre named after me,” Kerr said in the statement.
“It fills me with pride to think that football in WA is growing so rapidly in popularity and that children, at a grassroots level, as well as world-class sporting teams will be able to access these impressive facilities.”
The centre was used as a training base by five international teams during the recent FIFA Women’s World Cup and will be home to the next generation of WA football players, supporting the development of the sport from grassroots to high-performance teams.
