11/03/2026
"I got used to them treating me like sh*t.”
— Mac, 11 March 2026
Today Mac made the difficult decision to retire from hockey.
Many people have asked what led to this, so here are the facts.
Mac was the incumbent Premier League goalkeeper in 2024 and represented both Regals Hockey Club and the Newcastle District Women’s Hockey Association as a NSW player at the 2024 Australian Nationals. She also attended the Nike Hockey Camp in Oxford, UK.
In 2025, Regals introduced “selectors” for the goalkeeper positions. Mac received a phone call informing her she would be moved to 2nd Division while a younger, less experienced goalkeeper from outside the area would take the Premier League position.
No explanation was provided.
At the time, we accepted the decision and focused on Mac’s HSC year.
For the 2026 season, goalkeepers were told they needed to attend three training sessions to be graded. This was later changed to two sessions. Mac attended both.
The Premier League goalkeeper from last season attended one session — the final one.
After training last night, Mac was told by a Regals member that she would again not be selected for Premier League. When she asked why, the response was simply:
“I don’t know.”
No explanation.
No feedback.
No transparency.
To date, we still have no idea who the selectors were or what criteria were used to assess the goalkeepers.
Looking at the statistics from 2025 — particularly considering the difference in standards between Premier League and 2nd Division — Mac was the better goalie, and her performance speaks for itself.
The hardest moment came today when Mac said she had “got used to being treated like sh*t.”
No athlete should ever feel that way about a sport they once loved.
As parents, we never believed in playing politics or trying to curry favour with decision-makers. We have always believed players should be judged on effort, performance, and merit.
The positive outcome in all of this is that today our daughter learned her worth.
Mac is now moving forward with her Bachelor of Psychology / Bachelor of Sport Science, inspired in part by experiences like this and determined to help athletes who find themselves treated the same way.
If other players or families have had similar experiences with the selection process, you are welcome to reach out privately.
For transparency: after a previous post last night, the President of Regals contacted us asking that it be removed.
Conversations about fairness and transparency in sport should not be silenced.
But above everything else, the words that will stay with us are Mac’s:
“I got used to them treating me like sh*t.”
