Wagga football icon Sally Shipard now has a sporting ground named after her and she is the first female Wagga athlete to receive the honour. Photo: Lake Albert Public School.
Former Australian soccer player Sally Shipard said she was chuffed and emotional when she received the call announcing she would be honoured as the new athlete immortalised at Bolton Park.
For 18 months, the former Michael Slater Oval was left nameless, with Wagga Wagga City Council (WWCC) spending that time deliberating which local athlete should be honoured instead.
This week it was announced the oval would be renamed Sally Shipard Oval, with the ground set for an official naming sometime in January.
The former Matilda played 59 games for Australia, representing the green and gold at the Olympic Games, World Cup and the Asia Cup.
Ms Shipard said she was shocked when she received the call from WWCC to say she had been picked, making her the first female athlete to receive a named honour in Wagga.
“I was pretty chuffed and quite emotional when I got the phone call the other night,” she said.
“I’d heard that there were murmurs of it being a possibility, but I definitely didn’t think that it would play out that way.
“I’m incredibly proud. I love that I’m from Wagga, and I love reminiscing on my time there.
“I think it’s, it’s a celebration of women’s sport, let alone football. And I just love that my family name can be a part of Wagga’s history.”
Ms Shipard played for Wagga PCYC along with her brothers before moving to the state level.
“I basically just wanted to do everything that my brothers were doing. I have three brothers, two older and one younger, and my folks would just cart all of us kids around through winter, through summer, whatever it was, to all of our sporting commitments from the age of six,” she said.
“We were part of the PCYC football or soccer club for the first few years of our playing days.
“I was in a team full of boys, and I was made to feel by my coaches at the time, who were two teenage fellows, Michael Tuck and Roger Nye … they just made me feel like another kid, and I really have them to thank for creating that environment for me, being the only girl.”
Sally was at a Wagga United Football Club clinic earlier this year. Photo: Wagga United Football Club.
Ms Shipard said she was inspired to play for the Matildas after watching a game at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
“I was 12, so I was in Year 7 when I went to the Sydney Olympics and watched the Matildas play,” she said.
“From that moment, I was just utterly obsessed. I was asking myself some questions about what I needed to do to develop, to be like the best I could be.
“I had a few players, mainly Bernie Madden, that I looked up to, and I was trying to emulate them.
“I noticed in observing her that she could juggle the soccer ball with their feet. And so I, you know, took that very seriously. And as my confidence grew as a juggler, my confidence grew as a player on the field.
“I was very dedicated to be training on my own at home, and then also attending various local academies and stuff.”
One of Sally’s jerseys can be found at the Museum of the Riverina, where she is also an inductee of the Wagga Sporting Hall of Fame. Photo: Wagga Wagga City Council.
Playing on the biggest stages for the Matildas, Sally said it was hard to pick one moment that stood out.
“I think my debut was pretty remarkable. In Mexico, in 2004, as a 16-year-old kid who was still in Year 11 and was travelling with like a suitcase full of school books.
“The Asian Cup in 2010 was absolutely incredible as well. That went to a penalty shootout against North Korea. Winning that will always be ingrained.”
Her latest honour and the nomination itself have inspired her to continue to grow as a role model.
“I think the nomination, let alone the final outcome being made for me personally, it sort of buoyed me on to be like, OK, how can I continue to be a good person?” she said.
“It’s sort of inspired me in some way to continue being the best version of myself I can for the community.”
While there is no official date set for the official naming, it is expected to take place in January 2026.
“I do have a couple of weddings in January. They’re the only things that I am locked in for. Hopefully soon I’ll learn about the date and I’m free, and my family are free, and we all get down there for it,” she said.
