Inspirational Tiger Mum hopes for one more Grand FinalFriday, June 28, 2024 - 3:40 PM - by Chris Pike

THE WAFLW career of Kobi Nichols has already extended 12 months beyond initial plans following last year's Grand Final heartache, but now she's hoping it goes for at least one more week with Claremont after Saturday's preliminary final.

In the past 12 years alone and Nichols has been working as a physical education teacher, was playing volleyball and took up athletics where she ended up competing at the national championships, and now has been playing with Claremont in the WAFLW the last three years.

To top all that off, she's also a mother to a now four-year-old son as she prepares for what she hopes will be a winning last two games of her WAFLW career over the next fortnight.

Knowing 2024 will be last season

Nichols and her partner have been wanting to try for a second child but doing that while she was still playing in the WAFLW wouldn’t be possible, and she did think at the end of 2023 the time would be right.

The fairytale farewell of being part of back-to-back premierships looked well and truly on the cards right throughout the season for Claremont too until a shock loss to East Fremantle in the Grand Final.

That derailed those retirement and second child plans for Nichols because it just wasn’t going to sit right with her the rest of her life if the last game of football she played was that losing Grand Final.

So she committed herself to throwing everything at one last season at Claremont in 2024 and now is desperate for that to extend beyond Saturday's preliminary final against West Perth at Revo Fitness Stadium.

"I had full plans to finish footy at the end of last season. That was until we lost the GF and I had a few weeks off," Nichols said.

"Sounds very dramatic but I was so sad! I missed everyone, I missed training, playing and I even missed our coaches cringey PowerPoint animations.

"I missed it all and I wasn’t ready to give it up just yet. The plan was to try for another baby and I knew that it could wait just a little longer. But this season is definitely my last."

How football career started later in life

Sport has always been a big part of Nichols' life and that's why working as a physical education teacher is a natural for her, but whatever sport she's pursued she's always been a great success at.

That's why she got to travel the state, country and world as a volleyball player before turning her focus to athletics where she was able to end up competing at a national championships level.

"Well I love all sports, I’m a PE Teacher so have been exposed to few. Volleyball was the first sport I played at an elite level and I dedicated much of my life to it in my teenage years," Nichols said.

"I was fortunate to have parents support me in whichever avenue I took. Their love and encouragement is what allowed me to take it all the way and I got to travel internationally too! I get bored easily so moved onto Athletics after watching the London Olympics in 2012.

"I had a background of Little Athletics so I had a bit of muscle memory. I through myself into training for the Heptathlon, met some incredible people along the way and experienced competition in a few different states."

However, having a baby meant that Nichols' passions had changed a little bit in terms of sport and a team sport again was something she wanted to be part of, and it just ended up being fate that ended up seeing her start playing football.

That journey started by winning a premiership at Wembley which turned into her joining Claremont in the WAFLW for the 2022 season – and the rest is history with a premiership and two Grand Final appearances already under her belt.

"After having a baby in 2019 I tried to get back into Athletics but the drive wasn’t quite there anymore, so after my colleague suggested dropping into training with at Wembley, I thought ‘why not’!?," she said.

"Up until then I hadn’t got into footy that much, but it was the first year that Wembley had a women’s team so it was awesome to be a part of the club’s history. We took out the C grade premiership that season and that ignited some serious footy passion within.

"A friend contacted me on Instagram (Andie Payne – legend) to come and check out Claremont. At this stage I was doing a few informal trainings with Subiaco, but I’m a ‘yes’ girl, so I checked it out anyway.

"I was immediately blown away by the professionalism, the transparency and the determination shown by the coaches in this presentation that they did that I had to join. My age is above the average but it’s just a number to me.

"I feel young, strong and I like learning new things, so this was just another avenue to take. And the journey has not disappointed."

Becoming a mother

As much as Nichols loves working as a teacher, as much as she has always enjoyed whatever sport she has been committed to and now how much she has enjoyed being at Claremont and playing in the WAFLW, nothing compares to being a mother.

As any parent will tell you, your life instantly changes the moment that child comes home and nothing about it is easy, but there's also nothing more rewarding. Nichols has loved everything about the last four years despite all the challenges along the way.

"Ohh being a Mum is my favourite thing ever. Since becoming one, it has changed me significantly. It’s been a long self-discovery journey and there’s been many ups and downs along the way," Nichols said.

"For a while I struggled to come to terms with the fact that I couldn’t do all the self-indulgent things I used to (as selfish as it sounds), and that was tough. And then I felt guilty for feeling that! Ask any mum, the guilt is real.

"But along the way I had the support of an incredible husband who allowed me to work through this at my own pace and never assumed I would take on a traditional ‘stay at home mother’ role. Along with working full-time, I joined the WAFL, and the commitments were expectedly greater.

"I love being a part of Claremont but that’s time away from my family. I make it vital that the time I spend with them is special and my son knows why play," she added.

"I want him to grow up knowing that it’s important to fill your bucket, pursue what makes you happy even if it comes with sacrifices, commit to something fully, and most importantly, women can do awesome things."

Physically bouncing back from having baby

To watch Nichols play football right now and to see the obvious natural athlete that she is and it's remarkable to think that she gave birth to her son four years ago.

She feels that a lot of mothers can be underestimated for what they are capable of physically after giving birth and she would like to see those attitudes begin to change.

"There are so many inspiring stories of women being bad asses and breaking the rules of what they ‘should’ and ‘shouldn’t’ do. This includes child birth, where women are often restricted from making informed choices about their own bodies – it’s a subject I can go on forever with," Nichols said.

"But the common theme is that we know what our bodies are capable of! I’m not saying disregard the advice of a medical professional, but most of the time our bodies will tell us that we’ve actually got this.

"I would say the thing that’s allowed me to continue pursuing sport is a consistent & stable resistant training program."

While working in volleyball, athletics and now football Nichols has always had people telling her what she should be doing physically, ultimately what she has learned is that she understands her body better than anybody.

Having her son was the thing that made her realise that more than anything.

"I started working with a trainer in my late teens and although moved trainers due to the specific nature of the sports I was doing, I never stopped for more than a few weeks at a time," Nichols added.

"I was training in the gym until I was 38 weeks pregnant under a well-designed program from my trainer at the time. I also did everything I could to prepare my body for birth, including, regular chiro, yoga and acupuncture.

"I read hypnobirthing books which taught me about breathing in different stages of labour and was painting our campervan the day I went into labour. Keeping my body strong and always moving is definitely what helped with a smooth birth and recovery.

"In all honestly, I started running a lot earlier than what was advised, however it was slow, steady and I always listened to my body."

Feeling heading into preliminary final

Getting back to the business on the field now coming into Saturday's preliminary final and Nichols is fully aware that the Tigers will need to be at their best to overcome West Perth to earn another shot at East Fremantle in next week's Grand Final.

At the same time, Nichols is excited to have the preliminary final at Tigerland.

"I’m feeling very excited, ready and grateful to be in this position again. There’s obviously a lot riding on the game this Saturday but I have so much faith in us," she said.

"The past few weeks we’ve played together incredibly well and are performing at the right time so I’m pumped to see what we can do this weekend."

Working with a mindset coach this year is something that has helped her immensely and has helped Nichols find a way to embrace playing a variety of roles within this Claremont team of 2024.

"I’m mostly happy with my game at the moment. Aside from game reflections, this year we’ve participated in a lot more self-reflection than previous years," Nichols said.

"I believe that it’s such a massive key to success and it’s helped me quite a lot. This season we’ve been lucky to have a mindset coach (Darren) working alongside us.

"He’s really helped me with my confidence on field plus a few other unique mental strategies. I’ve been moved around a lot (which I have liked, getting to play different positions) keeping me on my toes and ensuring I’m fully aware of what my role is each week!"

Thankful for joining Claremont

Nichols might have now only played three years in the WAFLW but she couldn’t imagine have done it at any other club than Claremont and she continues to be thankful for the commitment the Tigers show to their female football program.

Now the chance is there for Nichols to get a fairytale finish by at least reaching a third Grand Final in three seasons, but she also isn’t taking anything for granted.

"I’m constantly pinching myself when I look around at my teammates, the coaches, support staff and the facilities that we call home," Nichols said.

"The Grand Finals have been the pinnacle but it’s the feeling I get when I can train and play with my best mates that makes it really special.

"I’ve been a lucky girl when comes to grand finals, and I understand that many players will go years and years without getting play in one. So if we get the chance again this year, I’ll be sure to play my heart out and leave nothing behind."