Calleigh Hedley's Journey: Balancing Football and Motherhood
Calleigh Hedley scores goals. Now she’s learning how to share her time.
The Guernsey FC striker is back leading the line after giving birth to her son Luca, trying to balance life as a new mum with the demands of senior football and the grind of getting fit again.
“I’m not looking forward to spending whole days away from him,” she admits. The honesty lands with the same force as one of her finishes. Football has always taken time and sacrifice. Now every away trip means a day stolen from her son.
Goals, then a pause
Hedley missed half of last season after becoming pregnant, but when she did play, she was ruthless. Eight appearances. Sixteen goals. She still finished as the sixth-highest scorer in the Southern Region Women's Football League Division One South.
Guernsey FC know exactly what that kind of return means. As they head into only their second season in the English league pyramid, her form could define their campaign.
The early signs? Encouraging.
Last month, the Green Lionesses stepped into new territory with their first-ever Women's FA Cup tie, a home clash with Chessington & Hook United. Hedley needed just two minutes to remind everyone what she does best, scoring the club’s first FA Cup goal and adding another later in a 3-2 defeat.
“I was shocked,” she said. “I wasn't sure I was even going to get a goal, let alone score in two minutes.”
The strike did more than light up the scoreboard. It settled nerves, eased doubts, and stitched football back into a life now centred around Luca.
“It definitely helped me feel a bit better coming back into it, and I obviously had my family there watching and Luca was there, so it was really nice.”
A new kind of away day
The challenge now is not just defenders or fitness. It’s logistics. Emotion. Guilt.
Guernsey’s reality is different from most clubs at this level. Every away match in England means an early alarm, a flight off the island, a long day, and a late return. That’s tough on any player. Tougher still on a mother of a young baby.
“My family are amazing, they're always helping me with Luca,” Hedley told BBC Radio Guernsey. “If I need to go to the gym or anything, they're always offering ‘we'll have him for a bit so you can go do what you need to do’.”
That support system is what makes this comeback possible. Training sessions, gym work, matchdays – all of it rests on relatives stepping in.
“For the away games, for the home games, they say ‘we'll have him, don't worry’, so it's been a massive help.”
Even with that backing, there are limits.
“I don't know if I'll be able to commit to every single away game,” she said. “But I will definitely be trying to do some, but it'll be difficult having a day away from him.”
Season starts, stakes rise
Guernsey open their league campaign at home on Sunday, hosting Bognor Regis Town before a run of three straight away fixtures. The schedule bites early.
For the club, the equation is simple: if Hedley is on the pitch, their chances rise. For Hedley, nothing is simple anymore. Every selection, every trip, is a decision about time with Luca.
She has already shown she can return from maternity and still find the net. The real story now is whether she can keep striking that balance – flights, goals, and those long days away – without losing sight of the little boy waiting for her back on the island.
