The young, 21-year-old charismatic Sturt Lions defender is an inspiration amongst the Women’s State League team’s leadership group. She has applied herself to her tertiary studies, all whilst working multiple jobs and pushing for her dream of an A League Women’s debut. But it hasn’t always been a smooth ride for Adhor along the way.
Journeying to Australia at the tender age of 4 and a half years old from South Sudan with her sisters and raised by her single-parent mother, it would take another 4 years for Adhor to step foot onto a football field:
My first team was at Cowandilla Primary School. They had an academy and I actually found myself being the only girl in that class. I kept playing and moved schools about two years later and continued the journey at Flinders Park. Then my sister, Tereza (Abuk) and I, we’ve been playing together since we were really young, ended up at West Adelaide, where we played for about 8 or 9 years. That was pretty much family there and where everything started. From there I tried a variety of sports. I did track, rugby, basketball…but they weren’t really for me.
Around year 8 or 9 everything developed a bit more when I attended Nazareth, a school that had just started a footballing academy coached by former Adelaide United defender and club legend, Cássio. It started off with three girls, but the other two dropped out and by the end I was the only girl left for the last few years. I kept pushing myself because I knew there was potential. It was a bit weird, but I did get my own locker room!”
Around the same time, Adhor found her time and resources being pulled in all directions, with the need to study and earn money to support her family, along with cultural expectations clashing with her dream to dedicate herself to football:
I have always worked since around the age of 13. I was working at KFC for about 6 years, and then when I finished high school, I worked in residential aged care as well as studying...It was a lot harder than I expected. So, I stopped studying for a bit and then I went on to apply to be a disability support worker, so I was managing 3 jobs! I loved working in aged care though; for me, it was like having my grandparents with me.
For me, football has always been a priority But, because obviously when you grow up in an African household as a female, sport is not really your main focus. It’s just basically work and study, and then after that it’s marriage. That wasn’t for me…it may be later on in the future, but for now I would like to have all of the other things. So, it started off with my older sister, she sort of created the foundation for us and created that pathway. She has done everything she can; uni and working and supporting us. It helped us take control, but it didn’t work out well straight away…”
Unfortunately, Adhor’s playing career was presented with another roadblock during early 2022, a time where she was working towards reaching her full potential:
I played with Comets last season, and it was actually going really well. John [Panagaris] is an amazing coach; he pushed me to be my best and he knew that I had potential.
I played with them for about 3 or 4 months and during that time a close friend of mine passed away. That was my initial breakdown. And because it was something we both used to do together, we used to go train together, when he passed away, it just triggered something in me and I just couldn’t do it anymore. So, I just stopped playing from there.
I was still training, but mentally and emotionally I couldn’t go back to football. I had to take the time to work on myself. So I played smaller tournaments and played the RAA African Nations Cup, tried to be happy and keep calm and come back up slowly. Then I received a message from Mel from Sturt Lions and she asked about how I would feel coming to a new club that has an amazing culture. It was a fresh start for everyone. So, I came across with my friend Elizabeth [Taban]; we had trials, it was fantastic. The whole club was amazing; it felt like I was home from the first time I walked through the gates. Now I know this is just what I need to get back on top, even if it takes me the next 3 to 4 years to get to the A League Women's.”
Adhor has taken control of her journey this year, ear-marking it as her time to make waves in the football world:
During the last 4 years it has been flat out with me, and I’ve been working constantly trying to do what I can. It means that I’ve taken time off football, which is not something I wanted to do, and it feels like time has gone by really quickly. I don’t want it to get to a point where it’s too late for me to actually be focusing on it. Now that everything is pretty much balanced, I’m going to be selfish and take this on. I don’t want to miss training sessions and then expect to start games; for me, that is not fair on other players. I want to earn my spot like I’ve always had to do, that’s why I needed to stop and let go of some of the work.”
You can continue to watch Adhor’s journey as Sturt Lions aim for promotion into the Go Sunny Solar WNPL this season. They next take on Campbelltown City tomorrow night at Steve Woodcock Sports Centre to see out Round 4 of the Women's State League.
