No ordinary footballer: Cardiff Met’s Chloe O’Connor on beating tumour – and returning in glory
13/12/2020 - Cardiff Met 2-0 Briton Ferry Llansawel © Carl Robertson
Chloe O’Connor is lighting up the Welsh Premier Women’s League right now, as the driving force in Cardiff Met’s pursuit for the title.
The Archers are sitting at the top of the table and she herself has been involved heavily, with her five goals putting her as joint top scorer.
But a few years ago O’Connor’s situation was very different with football not on the mind of Met’s superstar.
Whilst playing for Cardiff City Ladies, in 2018, she had persistent pain when training and taking part in games, but in anything which didn’t require exercise, she felt normal.
It wasn’t until the pain had become so unbearable that she put her football career on hold and sought advice from medical professionals.
Her doctor had insisted she go for a CT scan, it was revealed that she had a benign tumour on her spine and that it required an operation.
“It wasn’t good for my physical health, so I decided to stop playing,” said O’Connor who went into detail into her pausing her football career to prioritise her wellbeing.
“I went to see my doctor and at the time I wasn’t in any pain because I only had pain when I was exercising or playing football.
“I never had pain if it was a normal day and I was just walking around, I was fine.
“I went to see him and he said we have found something in your spine. Unfortunately we can’t tell you what it is because we don’t know. He said to me you have to think of the worst. It was very very scary.
“In November 2018, I had the results and he revealed that I had a benign tumour in my spine. I never thought it was anything as serious as that. My doctor said it was growing and it could become very dangerous as it was right next to my spinal cord, my doctor instructed that they would get rid of it straight away.
“One thing I did ask was if I would be able to going back to playing football. He said you should be able to go back within six months.
The operation itself however took five hours which was a major and unfortunately there was a few complications.
It would see her spend New Years Day in Heath Hospital and the recovery period was slow with her taking three months off of work.
The year would see her return to work but for a hobby and job that she both loved, she would have to take a backseat role.
The pain would still be there even when she was just walking and it came to a point where her plan to return to football may not have materialised.
However fast forward a year and the COVID-19 pandemic had affected everyone in the world, with the uncertainty of what would happen next.
O’Connor is one of those who benefitted from the world being shut down, as it allowed her to find time for recovery.
“I slowly started getting back to it. Even walking was really painful, for me at the time football was totally out of the picture. I thought football isn’t a priority for me at the moment and that the most important thing is that my health was okay and that I’d be able to walk without pain.
A year later, moving into 2020, lockdown hit, so I was put on furlough from March. My partner and I thought we would have so much time on our hands every single day that we didn’t want to waste it. My target was to get back into football and to get back running, which was an example of how bad it was.
“Every single day I would be doing pilates and yoga sessions. Every time we did something so we could progress. I did it really slowly, I started with runs, beginning with a 3K runs and then I got to 10k.
“The pain was in my head and I needed to get through it. There was a time that I wasn’t going to get back into football and It wasn’t the end of the world. Football is a hobby for me and something I love doing but it was making sure my health was okay.
“I always in the back of my head though wanted to get back into football. It wasn’t because of my physical health, it was more for my mental health. It’s about being around teammates, when you’re going to training and playing games, there is no better feeling than that.”
“In the months of only being allowed to leave the house for essentials and exercise, O’Connor had achieved feats she may have thought weren’t achievable a year ago.
Her confidence in her exercise plan had worked so much that she felt confident in returning to football and it was in July that she began training sessions with one of her former clubs, Cardiff Met.
“When July came, I was feeling good about myself, I did ball work by myself and I thought to myself I could have a crack at going back. I texted Kerry Harris, the manager of Cardiff Met, who is a great coach and a great person.
“She welcomed me back and sent me the details for training and it grew from there. In my first training session back, I was worried about tackling and stuff. When I overcame it, it was fine and I’ve progressed since then.”
For some, being unable to play football for a prolonged period time can see them become distanced from the sport.
In Chloe’s case this was impossible as her job is in football, she works at the FAW Trust as the National Projects Coordinator.
As she recovered, she would help young footballers in her role as an administrator and took in countless hours of football. She is now responsible for inspiring many young girls to take up football, playing a key role in the Trust’s Huddle programme.
“I really would have struggled if I weren’t involved at football.
“I would have struggled with it. I was really thankful that I had a job that made me work in football.
“I was watching football all the time, watching teams train and watching their games, so for me being involved was important.”
Like most football players, they have an aligned team when growing up. O’Connor is an ardent Swansea City supporter and just over a decade ago O’Connor achieved the dream that many a fan can only dream of.
At the age of just 15-years-old she made her debut for her childhood club, playing for them in the Welsh Premier Women’s League.
Just a year later, she would play and score in the UEFA Women’s Champions League qualifying grounds, highlighting her ability at such a young age.
“It was huge for me, I was playing with women that were much older than me, they were women I looked up to as a child.
“Some of the girls who still play now used to coach me when I was a kid.
“Being such a big Swansea City fan, going down the Vetch Field with my Dad as a kid, it was an honour to play for them.
“It was great for me to play for Swansea City.”
The 26-year-old’s loyalties now however lie with Cardiff Met, who are fierce rivals with her former side Swansea City for the Welsh Premier Women’s League title.
In her first spell, she made the move to Cyncoed Campus as she would begin three years of a Sport Management course at the University. It is there she found love with her partner who she will wed next year.
During her first spell with the club, she was part of the all-conquering Met side which claimed three WPWL titles and two Women’s Cups.
In one of their title triumphs, they went the entire league campaign unbeaten and scored an impressive 115 goals.
Reflecting on her success, she put praise onto current manager Kerry Harris, as well as the talented playing squad: “We had such a great team and Kerry Harris was there back then.
“She brings so much knowledge and experience to the game, it is crazy.
Some of the players in that squad now play at the top level of England.
“I think just being in University, it brought us together because you do things outside of football.
“It would be things like going out to lectures, going for food and just socialing.
“We had that togetherness as a team and that’s why we probably did so well, because we were such good friends.”
It is that time as a student which she enjoyed so much which lured her back to where she is now. O’Connor showed her gratitude to the University by putting aside some praise for those who helped shape her life.
“When I first went there I was completely different to what I’m like now,” added the former student.
“I learned a lot, including life skills and that brought the character out of me.
“The players and coaches I’ve met, they have played a huge part in bringing that team together.
“The togetherness has always been there even from when I was 18-years-old.
“The University has played a big part in my life.
“Cardiff Met will always be a great place for me and I’ve got friends for life there.
In 2016, whilst part of that dominant Cardiff Met side, O’Connor made her one and only Wales cap in the Cyprus Cup.
It was yet another dream she had wished to achieve in the early stages of her career.
“Playing for my country was my dream growing up.
“I played football from when I was five-years-old. So when I played for my country, my parents came to watch.
“I think I did it for them because they put in so much time and effort for me, to be able to give something back was good.”
In recent years, domestic players have been left out of a number of Welsh camps with the emphasis being on the professionalised Women’s Super League in England.
However O’Connor is hopeful that the restructuring of Women’s football in Wales, which is due to take place this year, will see more domestic players feature for their country.
“When I went back playing this year, I was really shocked at how much the standard had increased,” revealed the midfielder. “The intensity has risen too,”
“It’s great to play in a league that really challenges me but also one in which I enjoy playing with a team I love.”
“Hopefully with this restructure it will be a massive boost to all of Wales.
“I’m hopeful that it will bring more players through and we’ll see more players on the international stage.”
There is a hope that when Welsh domestic football can resume in Wales that O’Connor and her fellow domestic players can showcase their worth and force their way into the senior team.
