She may have ended up at the bottom of the scoreboard on last week’s opening show of the new season, but footballer Stephanie Roche says that she wants to give Dancing With The Stars her best shot.
Last Sunday saw Shamrock Rovers striker Stephanie (33) and her dance partner Ervinas Merfeldas first up to strut their stuff with a Cha Cha to Crazy What Love Can Do? by David Guetta but the judges were less than blown away, awarding her a total of 13 points.
Speaking about her slightly choppy DWTS debut, she said, "It was difficult, but I just want to enjoy the experience the best I can. It’s something that I’ve never done before and probably won’t do again.
"To go first was hard. We had the group dance before we came on so going straight into our dance was difficult.
"We worked really hard in the build-up to the dance. Was it the best dance ever? No. I gave it everything I could and for the first week it was nice to ease in into it and I hope I improve as the weeks go along. For me it was about giving it my best shot."
She added, "I had a feeling I was going to be the person to dance first. I just had a feeling! It was good to get it out of the way but it’s important to start the show well, so I definitely had that pressure."
She thinks her background in sport will help her go the distance on the show.
"In football you always have your ups and downs and I think that experience will help me. I think it’s important not to be too down about my score. I wasn’t too far behind the other competitors. To go first was hard, the judges went quite tough. I need to show a stubbornness and perseverance now."
From Shankill in Dublin, Stephanie is one of Ireland’s best-known female footballers. She made her international debut in 2009 and has scored 14 goals over the course of her 58 appearances.
She shot to fame in 2013 when her goal for Peamount against a Wexford side was runner-up for the FIFA Puskas Award for Best Goal of the Year. The footage went viral with over five million views and brought her big international attention. She was the only woman to be voted a finalist that year.
Stephanie also appeared on RTÉ’s Ultimate Hell Week in 2021 and is a regular pundit and commentator on RTÉ soccer coverage.
Shamrock Rovers are currently in pre-season preparation and it has freed her up to take part in DWTS. "I spoke to Rovers before I signed up for the show and they were very good at getting my workload right," she said. "I’m still training for football but it’s about getting the balance right."
As a huge Wolfe Tones fan, Stephanie was delighted to have Brian Warfield of the band supporting her in the studio audience for her very first DWTS routine.
"That was great. It was really great to have him there," she said. "I’ve been a fan of the band since I was a kid, so it was really nice."
However, she laughed off suggestions that she might dance to The Wolfe Tones’ anthem Celtic Symphony on DWTS. "God, no. I think there’s already been enough controversy about that song so I’d avoid anything like that. People have different opinions on that song."
Stephanie, who also runs her own coaching business, married fellow footballer Dean Zambra last year and he’s been fully supportive of her as she temporarily swaps the football for a spin under the glitterball.
Asked why she decided to take the plunge and agree to do DWTS, she said, "It’s something that came up a couple of time when I was away, and I couldn’t do it. being back in Ireland and playing in Ireland and it was the off-season, so I thought I’d give it a shot.
"Rovers have been brilliant. They’ve been trying to lighten my training load because they know I’m putting a lot of time into my dancing but I’m a professional and I’ll always make sure I’m there for football. They’re fully behind me."
Dancing With The Stars continues on RTÉ One on Sundays.
