Women Storm the League Barricades
Luke Dennehy - Herald Sun
September 21, 2006
THE men of Melbourne Storm are on the cusp of premiership glory, and their partners have been alongside them all the way.
The women of Melbourne Storm are as excited as the men, who play St George Illawarra in Sydney on Saturday night for a place in the NRL Grand Final.
Mostly from interstate, they have formed a strong bond off the field, because when they move to Melbourne with their partners they have no family and friends to share the excitement.
The women have planned a girls-only trip to the Gold Coast and have regular movie and dinner nights without the boys.
Cairns girl Nicole Rose said she initially had reservations about moving to Melbourne to be with partner Billy Slater.
"I've never been a footy chick and the stereotype of girls is that they are really bitchy," she said.
"But when I got here it was so great.
"We are just like a family for each other, because we don't have family down here.
"I love it."
Belinda Geyer is the only partner who has seen the premiership hype before: her husband, Matt Geyer, was a member of the team that won in 1999.
She said the Melbourne Storm camp was genuinely united.
The couple have three young children six and under, and when they need a babysitter there is always someone to call on.
"The kids treat the boys like uncles," she said.
"When I'm sick, Barb (Barb Johnson, the partner of Dally M Medal winner Cameron Smith) will come over and look after the kids.
"If one of the boys is moving, you'll find five or six of them over there helping out."
Johnson agreed: "When Cameron won the Dally M Medal I think there was not one girl who didn't text me that night."
Geyer said the women's unity was important for their partners.
"It's really important for the girls to be happy because they are not going to play the best football if they come home and we are whingeing and nagging," she said.
Krista Hutchison, whose partner, Ben Cross, had had a number of serious injuries, said she had made many friends in Melbourne through the Storm.
"The girls understand your life down here," she said.
"They understand to a certain extent your life does revolve around the boys, but that's the choice we've all made."
Watching their partners get injured was tough, said Kate Novak, the partner of Steven Turner.
"It's one of the most nerve-racking things."
Compared with Sydney and Brisbane, rugby league players in Melbourne can go about their lives with little attention, something all the women cherish.
"I love Melbourne," Geyer said. "We've been able to live our lives with none of the attention."
Most of the women say their partners are so focused on each game as it comes and are not thinking of the Grand Final -- perhaps a legacy of coach Craig Bellamy.
