Matildas midfielder Kyra Cooney-Cross has shared an intimate and poignant message after taking a hiatus from her football career to support her mother through a challenging health crisis.
The 24-year-old is staying in Australia and will not rejoin Arsenal Women’s team for the remainder of the season following her mother Jess’s diagnosis of a rare, aggressive cancer.
In a moving Instagram update, Cooney-Cross opened up about the emotional strain of balancing family responsibilities, long distances, and the pressures that come with being a professional athlete.
“Since then, time’s always been moving, flights, schedules, expectations, always watching the clock, always somewhere to be,” she expressed.
For the first time in many years, life has finally slowed down for her.
Kyra Cooney-Cross shared an emotional poem revealing heartbreak as she pauses football career to support her mum’s cancer battle
Cooney-Cross described leaving home while young to chase her football dreams, then returning home for her family in devastating personal circumstances
The Arsenal star gave her followers an unvarnished insight into how she’s coping with her mum’s declining health
“I’ve found time at home I’ve never really had before. And it’s quiet in the best way,” she reflected.
‘Family dinners that don’t feel rushed, coffee dates that turn into conversations… walks along the beach with nothing but the sun and ocean keeping pace.’
But the peaceful moments are overshadowed by a reality she cannot change.
‘It doesn’t feel real. Like a bad dream I can’t wake up from, watching you go through something I can’t fix, can’t carry, can’t fully understand.’
Cooney-Cross admitted the emotional strain of balancing her identity as an elite footballer with the pull of family during a crisis.
‘Out there, on the other side of the world, everyone says we’re living the dream. And yeah, in some ways, we are.
‘But dreams come with trade-offs.
‘Missed moments. Distance. A quiet kind of loneliness you don’t talk much.’
The Matildas star (pictured left in action for Australia) admitted to feeling guilt at stepping away from football to focus fully on her mother
Cooney-Cross (pictured with fans) revealed the pain of watching her mum suffer through a battle she cannot win for her or understand
Football, she said, has always been at the centre of her life, but for now, it has taken a back seat.
‘It’s always there in the background, the thing I’ve built myself around, the thing I prioritise over life, and the one time I don’t, there’s guilt because it’s all I’ve ever known.
‘But family first, always.’
Her decision to remain in Australia has been fully supported by her club and national team, with Renee Slegers confirming she will not return to Arsenal this season.
‘She stayed in Australia to spend time with her family and we’re respecting that,’ Slegers said.
‘She won’t be with us for the rest of the season.’
Matildas coach Joe Montemurro also praised the midfielder’s strength during the recent Asian Cup campaign, where she continued to play despite the personal turmoil.
‘What she’s going through is unique. What she’s going through is difficult,’ he said.
Football Australia and teammates have rallied around Cooney-Cross (pictured with Arsenal legend Ian Wright) as she navigates one of the toughest periods of her life
‘The maturity that Kyra’s shown in this process has been absolutely amazing.’
Cooney-Cross missed the opening matches of the tournament before returning to play a key role, starting in both the semi-final and final as Australia fell just short of the title.
Support has poured in from across the football world, with Arsenal teammates warming up in her jersey and fans paying tribute in the stands.
But for Cooney-Cross, the focus remains firmly at home.
‘She’s napping on the couch like no time passed, like I never left at all,’ she wrote of her mum.
‘You’re still here, and I miss you.’
In a closing message that captured the heartbreak and love at the centre of her decision, she added:
‘So I stay, really stay. No clock. No rush. Just being present.
‘Because if there’s anything I need you to know…
‘I love you.’
