It has been a while since my last newsletter update and a lot has happened since then. It feels like the second half of the year has just flown by, with December upon us, Christmas music is playing and 2024 looming.

When I reflect on the last few months, I believe I can do so with pride. After the World Cup haze washed over me and I returned to Glasgow, it took work both mentally and physically to start to see the sunlight again. As with everything faced in life I try to believe that it all happens for a reason, all the trials and tribulations develop strength and power that you might not even know exists within.

Personally speaking, football has always been a bit like a rollercoaster. As I grow older, wiser, and stronger, I have certainly learnt to reflect when in a ‘good’ period, and be a bit more thankful when they come, even if they are fleeting. The low points never get easier, but you certainly do get to see the ‘wood for the trees’, and I rely on the fact that what is meant to be – will be. Since the 23/24 season began, we have played a lot of football and I have positively found myself in the starting line-up on a regular basis. Confidence in anything is key, especially in work, but managing the expectations of others while trying to perform can be difficult. It has certainly been a balancing act for me and one that will always need TLC.

I made myself available for the November Fifa window with the NZ Football Ferns, and after selection for the squad, given everything this past year, I was filled with emotion. Fast forward a few weeks, and we are in a bit of a tough period club-wise at Glasgow City, losing a couple of the big games against Celtic and Rangers and personally sustaining a medial ankle ligament injury in the 95th minute, a week before I was to leave to meet the Ferns in Colombia.

Setbacks, a constant but sporadic occurrence you cannot ever plan for. Just like my share portfolio, I’m in with football for the long haul, and I plan to plough through this bump in the road as I have with all the others, because the only way is through, and to quit, well, that hasn’t been a road I have ever taken, even if it has crossed my mind. Sometimes we must be patient, and that is what my ‘Granma’ and I tell ourselves as we discuss our share portfolios across the miles.

Merry Christmas everyone, thank you again to Hamilton Hindin  Greene for the support, sending holiday spirit to all from chilly Glasgow, stay safe,

Meikayla Moore.