Where Hope Lives

Moana Hope has never been afraid of fighting for what’s right – particularly when it comes to her family. The AFL women’s league star tells Genevieve Gannon about her most recent battle for the happiness of her beloved sister, Vinny.

- Genevieve Gannon

When Moana Hope describes her stint on the gruelling reality TV show Survivor as “a good break”, it says a lot about the challenges she faces in her day-to-day life. “I didn’t have to wake up at 4 am. I didn’t have to manage 100 employees. I was just on an island eating some rice,” the footballer says of the competition that even Steve ‘Commando’ Willis admitted was tougher than he expected.

“Tougher than expected” is a term that could easily be applied to Moana. Three years ago, the 31-year-old found herself thrust into the media spotlight when she was picked to be a marquee player for the debut season of the AFL women’s league and reporters zeroed-in on her remarkable personal story.

Raised with 13 siblings, Moana left home to become a full-time carer to her dying father who she described as her best friend and the driving force behind her passion for AFL. Her gutsiness won her legions of fans and ambassadorships, but the spotlight wasn’t always kind. She has been bullied on social media, where she has an active presence and where her candour reveals a woman whose loyalty to her family governs everything she does.

In the warm, bustling house in Melbourne’s inner north that she shares with her partner, Isabella Carlstrom, and sister Livinia (or Vinny), she speaks to The Weekly about the latest hurdle her family has had to overcome.

“I was in tears and I didn’t know how to respond to such a thing or how to feel about it,” she says.

The issue was the shock closure of a day program that provided care and education to Vinny who, as we speak, covers her face with her light brown hair, freshly blow-dried and curled for the photoshoot. Moana gently brushes back Vinny’s locks and tenderly whispers something to her little sister, who breaks into a smile and leans into Moana’s affectionate arms.