FOR a girl who had never stepped foot on a plane until two months ago, Wagga soccer prodigy Jada Mathyssen-Whyman is racking up the miles to achieve her goals.
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The 14-year-old spent the winter driving from Wagga to Sydney each weekend, as well as to Canberra once a fortnight to receive expert coaching and play in the Sydney women's premier league.
In September she took her first flight overseas to China to represent Australia at the under 17 Asian Football Championships.
Tomorrow she will jet off once again, this time headed for Fiji where she will represent NSW in the Ultimate Soccer Cup.
For Mathyssen-Whyman and her family, the time and travel is all part of the commitment to her sport.
"We would have no idea how many kilometres we've travelled this year," her mother Vanessa Whyman said.
"Jada's taken it well, she's done quite a few trips in a plane now so she's getting used to it."
The family will sacrifice their life in Wagga to chase Mathyssen-Whyman's dream when they make the move to Canberra later this month.
Once based in Canberra, she will train four times a week with national goal keeping coach Paul Jones while continuing to travel to Sydney each weekend to play for the Macarthur Rams.
The ultimate goal is to crack a W-League team once she turns 16, and from there the Matildas.
"That's the next step, getting to the W-League, then she can strive to play for Australia," Whyman said.
"We're packing up and moving to Canberra but the opportunity to train with Paul Jones free of charge is too good to let go.
"At the moment our focus is supporting Jada and doing everything we can to give her these opportunities."
Mathyssen-Whyman has already been placed on Sydney FC's senior list but will not be eligible to play in the W-League until she turns 16.
Her mother says she would also consider joining Canberra United but will make the call when the time comes.
