Sarah Rowe turned down the offer a two-year contract in the AFL to ensure she didn't miss any championship action for Mayo.
The Collingwood star won Women’s Footy AFL Multicultural Player of the Year in a superb maiden campaign Down Under where she started every game of a disappointing campaign overall for the club.
The Kilmoremoy native is now back on Irish shores until the end of Mayo's Championship run before she returns to Australia for another season with the oval ball.
The 23-year-old, speaking at the announcement of Kinetica Sports Nutrition as official partner of Rowing Ireland, said that while she could have committed to a two-year deal, the lure of playing in the green and red was just too strong.
"I didn't sign one because then you're tied. In that situation, ideally, they'd have said to me, 'Oh we'd love if you could play for the VFL season'. I said, 'Well, I'll be playing for Mayo, so unlucky'.
"I wouldn't sign one just for that reason. I want to play for Mayo, I know that that's what I want to do. That's where my loyalty is and that's where it lies.
Obviously, there's still such a good opportunity out there, but I can't see myself living in Australia full-time and upping and leaving my life in Ireland. Definitely, as a short-term thing, it's a massive experience."
Off the pitch too there are consequences to the move. A qualified teacher, returning home when schools are closing in on summer holidays makes part-time work in her profession a non-runner.
"September then is a month before I go back out to Australia. That's the complication. What do you do between now and then is what I'm trying to figure out. I'd ideally like to have a job for a few days a week and keep ticking over, but I haven't figure that one out yet."
It is not something she is unduly worried about.
"As a person I just take every day as it comes. I could get injured and who knows, not go to Collingwood. I don’t know what’s around the corner."
The opportunity to sample life as a professional athlete is something she is grabbing with both hands, and the life, as well as sporting experiences, have been an eye-opener.
She has learned quickly of her responsibilities off the pitch. Courteous behaviour is non-negotiable, and there is an onus to present a good representation of oneself on social media. The players are monitored and advice doled out.
Leadership is another aspect. The Collingwood squad contains Olympians in the form of hockey players and bobsleighers, while some former netball players are also among the mix. The onus is on the leadership group to assist in bringing the group together and Rowe says it has been significant development in her understanding of the role.
"A good leader, it’s one who brings players with them and doesn’t worry if they shine brighter than them."
Above all else, Rowe's determination to succeed was the cornerstone of her debut season. On Tuesdays and Thursdays she stayed on for one-on-one coaching. When they totted it up at the end of the campaign, she had amassed 250 extra hours on the training field.
The respect was earned, and it also meant there were no excuses from her perspective.
"I wanted to make sure I’d come home having done everything I could to put myself in the best position.
"I was willing to do whatever was asked of me and more"
"I always said to myself, the day that there’s round one selections, if I have done everything and ticked every box to make sure I’m in the best position possible to get selected. If I don’t get selected I’m simply not good enough and that’s fine.
"I was willing to do whatever was asked of me and more."
From now until September, it's back to the game she knows best.
The nature of the Championship means there will be a wait before she gets to don county colours in competitive fare again, while manager Peter Leahy's decision to move her out the field in the recent outing against Cork was more about letting her get stuck into things than a tactical redeployment.
"Peter wanted me to get as many touches as I could. I hadn't played in what, eight months, because I had shoulder surgery as well. I was a long time out of football."
A Connacht final on 23 June against Galway is the next big date in the diary and Rowe wants to return to Australia having helped her county onto bigger and better things in 2019.
