Last week, juniors from the Monaro Panthers Football Club were treated to a visit from Canberra United midfielder, Karly Roestbakken.
The 18-year-old is currently the second-longest serving player on Canberra’s roster and a former Monaro player, and she returned to her old stomping ground to talk to some of the up-and-coming young talent.
“Being able to go there and connect with the little ones who are coming through is really exciting,” Roestbakken said.
“It brings a smile to my face to see that they’re having fun and it’s always fun to go down and reconnect to where it all started.”
The opportunity to talk to one of the W-League’s brightest young talents was also an exciting opportunity for the Monaro players, and Roestbakken said that she is aware of the status she has as a role model for the kids.
“It’s very important, especially at Monaro, that there is a good pathway going through, and Monaro is a club that can produce players who want to achieve something great,” she said.
“I think it is important these younger ones to have role models who have been where they’ve been. I’m only 18, so I want to achieve a lot more, but to achieve what I have done, I couldn’t have done that without Monaro.”
Canberra United had an underwhelming season in 2018/19, in which they finished eighth on the W-League ladder, and Roestbakken said that she also started slowly but was pleased with her form by the end of the season.
“We didn’t have the season that we wanted,” she said.
“On a personal level … the last few games in the second half of the season, I did a whole lot better than I did in the first half.”
