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Former Virden resident Terri Wolfe in tackle football

Robin’s Review
Terri Wolfe

When former Virden resident Terri Wolfe indulges in a little “me” time, it involves a helmet, shoulder pads and cleats.

The daughter of Dave and Martha Wolfe, plays for the Manitoba Fearless, a Winnipeg-based women’s tackle football squad. As a married mother of five children and a stepdaughter, Wolfe said she is usually doing things for others – and rightfully so. Her work as a teacher along with such endeavours as refereeing soccer, working as a Steeped Tea consultant, tutoring math, playing piano at church, and coaching football all have an element of helping others, she said.

“Football is my selfish time,” Wolfe wrote in a social media interview. “I do it for me and no one else. In fact, my family sacrifices a lot for me to play, as by the time the regular season comes around, we have four practices and a game a week, and we travel at least one weekend every season. It can become very stressful, but it is also a huge stress release, and I'm not ready to give it up just yet.”

In 2014, Wolfe fulfilled a lifetime dream of playing tackle football by suiting up for the Fearless as a receiver. The next season she switched sides of the field and plated cornerback. However, she tore her anterior cruciate ligament in the third game of the season. She worked hard to rehabilitate the injury without surgery, but a stress fracture in her left foot kept her off the field last season.

“I found that incredibly frustrating, as all I wanted to do was play,” Wolfe wrote. “I don't even know if I can express how good it felt to get out there again.”

The Fearless were glad to have Wolfe for the 2017 campaign. Former University of Manitoba standout, Cam Teschuk, coached the Fearless defensive backs this past season. He was impressed with Wolfe’s toughness on and off the field. Teschuk praised her for never avoiding contact. He said that, even while battling injuries, she “could always be counted on to be physical with receivers and to support the run when called upon.”

However, it was her mental toughness off the field that impressed him the most.

“As is the reality with many female football players, Terri had to balance her commitment to football with her responsibilities at work and to her family,” he wrote in a social media interview. “Terri exemplified what it means to be a good teammate in all three aspects by constantly working hard, supporting her teammates, and being a positive influence and role model to everyone she worked with. It was a pleasure coaching such a hard working athlete and watching the positive influence she has on everyone around her.”

This past school year Wolfe taught math in French at Collège Béliveau.

“She's a teacher by trade and her love for learning and problem solving really shows during practice and pre-season prep,” wrote Brandon product Lisa Klaverkamp, one of Wolfe’s teammates and a former national team member, in an email interview. “I always admire Terri's determination and dedication to the team and to learning her position.”

Growing up in Virden, Wolfe was always a Winnipeg Blue Bombers fan and had a passion for the sport. She loved playing at recess in grades four through eight, and the 1993 Virden Collegiate Institute grad had hoped to play in high school. She did not get that chance but is enjoying her playing days now.

“I love the physicality, being completely exhausted and beaten up after a game,” Wolfe wrote. “I love the intelligence of the game, trying to outwit your opponent, trying to find the pattern without being lulled into complacency by it. I love how it drives me to work harder and better myself, because if I don't, I'm going to get beaten.”

Wolfe started coaching the game she loves last season and is working towards becoming a certified coach. She recently worked at a training camp and was excited that four girls attended. The Manitoba Girls Football Association grows each year and, with the Fearless and Winnipeg Wolfpack, Winnipeg boasts two women’s tackle teams. However, Wolfe said many people are unaware that female tackle football exists – other than the Legends Football League, which was formerly the Lingerie Football League.

“When I tell people that I play football, they tend to assume that I mean flag, and are always surprised when they hear that I gear up just like the players on TV, and go out and hit other women,” Wolfe wrote. “The more we can get the word out, the more the sport will grow, and the better it will become. Just look at women's hockey. No, we will likely never be out there playing with the big boys, but there is no reason that we cannot have an equally entertaining game. There's no need for lingerie to make it interesting.”

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