The Women’s Soccer World Cup, which starts in two weeks, has been hyped to be bigger and more sophisticated than ever before. There are 32 teams for the first time, and more than a million tickets for the tournament have already been sold.
Finland’s National League does not come to mind as the best possible place to prepare for the World Cup tournament, but for Jacqueline “Jacqui” Handin I think it’s the best place.
– I think the series is of a good standard. I’ve gotten and am getting a lot of playing time, which is one of the most important things when you want to gain experience and improve all the time. It’s a professional environment here and the club supports me tremendously, Hand said during the games in a café in Mariehamn.
However, last weekend against HJK, Åland had to survive without his goal gun, as the New Zealander, who scored seven goals for the islanders, had already traveled to the other side of the globe. In the following weeks, he gets to live one of his big dreams.
In exactly two weeks, on Thursday, July 20, the long wait will end.
Around 50,000 people will be shouting, chanting and clapping their hands wildly as the New Zealand women’s national football team march into Eden Park Stadium – and it’s in Hand’s hometown of Auckland.
– I’m super excited. This has been my biggest dream and biggest goal since I was a little girl. And now that the Games are still in my home country… It’s such a big deal, absolutely insane.
– Women’s football has also grown enormously in New Zealand. When I was little, I still played on the boys’ team, because there weren’t enough girls for my own team, Hand recalled.
He himself got excited about football inspired by his brothers. Big brothers used to play in the backyard.
– Mother says that even as a baby I was always naughty, Hand laughed.
Hand preferred to spend his free time playing sports, and football was by no means the only sport – although it was his favorite sport.
From island to island
He also followed his older brother later when he chose to study at a university in the United States. He played for the Colorado College Tigers before moving to Europe.
– After I graduated, I moved to England and trained with London City. My intention was to get a British passport and sign a contract there or with another English club, Hand told of his plan to play in his father’s home country.
In the end, however, the contract did not materialize, and Hand ended up in Finland.
– My agent told me that there would be one thing like this in Finland. Within two weeks of that I was already here. At first it was only for a couple of months, my intention was just to help when they needed an attacking player.
The departure happened so fast that Hand didn’t have time to sort things out.
– It’s pretty funny. I didn’t even know I was coming to the island. I knew almost nothing about Finland, Hand admitted.
However, he enjoyed himself on the island right from the start. Hand describes Finland and New Zealand as quite similar, even though New Zealand, with a population of just over five million, is located in the southwestern part of the Pacific Ocean, completely on the other side of the globe.
– Finns are quieter and the language is different, but there aren’t that many differences now. I’m having a really good time here. The hardest thing in North America and here is being away from family, because family is the most important thing in my life.
Beeks gets praise
When Hand had only been in Finland for a few weeks, he was the head coach Steve Beeks already had time to be convinced of the New Zealander’s skills. He was offered a contract extension until the end of the season and Hand responded in the affirmative.
Besides the pleasant environment, Beeks was one of the reasons.
– Steve has been really good for my development. He really focuses on developing individuals to be better. He has talked with my national team coach about how I can get into the national team and how I could get playing time regularly. Steve has been very helpful and led individual exercises if needed, Hand praised.
That’s why Hand decided to continue in Mariehamn after last season. This year, the goal is again the Cup championship – for Åland United it would be the fourth in a row. The team in second place in the national league aims for a medal.
While preparing for the World Championships, he says that he paid attention to nutrition, recovery and sleep.
– The biggest thing is to be in this environment, where you can improve every day. I think it’s about a lot of small things: sleep, going to the gym, the right kind of nutrition, Hand began.
– It’s about sacrifices. Some may go out and be out longer and may not take enough care of sleep, rest or preparation for the next week’s training. But the biggest thing for me has been taking care of them. Being far away from home is maybe the hardest thing, but I can see that it was the right way to prepare for the World Cup to be ready.
A long-term goal coming true?
There are not many professional environments available to women in New Zealand yet. There are no professional teams in the country’s main league, as well as in the national league. The country’s only professional women’s team, Wellington Phoenix, plays in the Australian league.
However, things have progressed wildly since Handi’s junior years: nowadays there are also academies for girls, and junior girls no longer have to play with boys, because a team would not be formed.
Hobbyists is approximately the same as in Finland: about 40,000 girls and women. However, it is much less than netball, which has up to 350,000 fans.
Despite that, Hand says that the popularity of women’s football has grown wildly in recent years, which can certainly be seen in the stands as well. With the support of the home crowd, the team that has appeared on the green of the World Cup for five times can also succeed in its long-term goal: to win the first World Cup match when it faces the World Cup first-timers, ranked 46th in the world: the Philippines.
Handi’s goal is to get as much playing time as possible in his home country’s shirt.
– The fact that it is possible for me to run on the field in front of the home crowd is absolutely insane. We want to make our country proud, offer good games, give everything on the field and go as far as possible.
New Zealand will face Norway in the opening match of the World Cup. You can watch the match on TV2 and Areena on Thursday 20.7. at 10:00 a.m. will show all 64 matches of the World Cup on its channels. Åland United will face TPS in the fifth round of the football Suomen Cup on Thursday, July 6 at 17:00.