Kay Hockey (2018)
I fell in love with quidditch the first time I played. And from then on, quid was life.
I have played sport my whole life, but this was a very different one and so I threw myself into the challenge of learning to play quidditch with such excitement. My first QUAFL at my home ground on the Sunshine Coast cemented my love for Quid, my team and the community and it inspired me to dive in deeper (as if Quid wasn’t already everything I thought about and did).
I’ve gained a whole community of friends and family, it got me physically fitter, and I have learnt more about myself and my abilities than I thought was possible.
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Kay joined the USC Dementors in 2018, and has since been selected for the QLD Thunderbirds in 2019 and as an alternate for the 2020 Dropbears.
Photo: Ajantha Abey Quidditch Photography
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Jack Emerton (2016)
Right from the moment I discovered quidditch was a sport, scrolling through Facebook and seeing an article that Australia had won the quidditch World Cup, I immediately wanted to play. Watching the game and learning it’s aspects, I couldn’t contain my excitement and wanted to get out there and play. My first ever game was at QUAFL 2016 against Adelaide, and right from the moment I stepped onto the pitch, I knew this would be my thing. I was hooked right from the start and my enthusiasm hasn’t changed since.
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Jack began playing for the Manticores in 2016, has been their Team Rep for the past two years, and was the Vice Captain of the Victorian Honeyeaters in 2019.
Photo: Ajantha Abey Quidditch Photography
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Lara Griffin (2019)
I fell in love with Quidditch the moment I came to my first training. Everyone was welcome, I went from having no friends to a tonne from everywhere, I could ask everyone for help and didn't have to worry about hiding anything about myself. No matter what level of skill every new player has had, they have been welcomed into teams. From my netball background, to friends' table tennis background, everyone was welcomed.
Every single club, be it Div 1 or Div 2, a university club or a community club, makes everyone feel so welcome and safe.
Playing in the State Tournament was such a significant moment for me, I felt included and respected, and like all the hard work I can put in had finally paid off.
The level of acceptance I feel every time I go to Quidditch, be it trainings, game days, concussion workshops, tournaments, I knew that regardless of my gender, experience in the game, sexuality, anything - I had found my niche, and my little safe space.
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Lara began playing for Monash University (Mudbloods) in 2019, and was also selected for the Victorian Honeyeaters that year. She now plays for the Melbourne Manticores.
Photo: James Layh Quidditch Photography
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Chloe Tapp (2016)
It was QUAFL 2016, we were the ACU Paladins then. We were playing The Wrackspurts in our pool match and we knew going in that we wouldn’t win but we gave it everything we could. I fell in love with the sport from the second I stepped on the field. I loved the team atmosphere we had and the fun we have off the field. I think that’s what makes me love the sport even more.
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Chloe began playing with the ACU Paladins in 2016. She is now coach of the Brisbane City Quidditch Club and community photographer.
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Natalie Astalosh (2012)
The first match I ever played was QUAFL 2012; Paul and I went to high school together and he knew the people who formed the first Usyd team. I was an athletic HP fan, so I showed up having been to half a training once. It was fun but I didn't get on with the rest of the team, and with a science timetable I didn’t have much time for activities. One of the three events I went to in 2013 was QUAFL, where the team placed 3rd and qualified for the premier club tournament: World Cup VII (now US team exclusive), to be held in South Carolina.
I studied abroad in Copenhagen in 2014, and figured when would I have the chance to play sport internationally again? The team itself had changed a lot too, and very few of the original 2012’ers were still around, and I barely knew any of the new people. But these people, flying from Sydney, in high spirits and just happy to be there, happy to welcome me in as practically an outsider, that was really special. Then the tournament itself! 79 teams, 8 fields. "HEY IT'S AUSTRALIA!" everywhere we went. Feeding Americans Vegemite. Playing hard and having fun. Singing the anthem at the top of our lungs from the grandstand. Laughing at the snitch shenanigans. Playing Mafia in the hotel room. Beach quidditch as “training”. We lost all our games but it didn’t even matter: it’s the people who make this sport, and I’d found my people, found a team I wanted to be part of.
Returning home from exchange I was determined to really throw myself into “uni life”. I took up quidditch properly, started training and going to tournaments and, well, haven’t stopped since.
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Natalie began playing with the USyd Unspeakables in 2012, where she was a Treasurer, Captain, and President. She now plays with the Sydney City Serpents. She is or has been an Australian Dropbear, NSW Blue Tongue, Captain, Gameplay Committee Member, Ref Lord, and IQA Rulebook Committee Member.
Photo: Isabella Gong
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Maddie Fitzgerald (2018)
I started playing in 2018 and whilst I enjoyed the weekend competitions, I didn’t know if it would be something to continue in the following years. I decided I would go to QUAFL in December of 2018 as a final decider. QUAFL was in the Sunshine Coast that year and at the last minute I was convinced to stay up there an extra week after QUAFL finished along with the rest of my team. Not only did I fall in love with quidditch that weekend, I fell in love with the community, the inclusiveness, I made some of my best friends in the Monash Muggles as well as in other teams, and I fell in love in a different way. It was that weekend that I met the girl who I have now been dating for over a year. That one weekend literally changed my life and I wouldn’t change it for the world.
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Maddie started playing for the Monash Muggles in 2018, and is now a Dropbear and Leadbeater.
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