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Rugby player Ilona Maher responds to crying girl who was told she 'can't play football'

She knew exactly what to say.

Wikipedia, Photo credit: Canva

Girls can play whatever sport they want to play.

Rugby player Ilona Maher's delightfully goofy personality, fearless authenticity, and vocal advocacy for body positivity made her an instant icon following the 2024 Olympics, as well as an inspiring role model for young girls. Whether she’s dancing onstage to Encanto or simply collecting the whipped cream tax from her fridge at home, her message of “you are perfect as you are” rings loud and clear.

And thankfully, Maher came across one young girl who particularly needed some encouragement. On TikTok, a mom named Stephanie (@stephsayitall) and her heartbroken daughter, Lena shared how she was told that girls can’t play football.

That's not even factually true, given that The NFL is actively promoting flag football for girls, with initiatives like the "NFL FLAG 50" campaign, aiming to sanction it as a varsity sport in all 50 states. According to the official NFL Flag website, 14 states have officially sanctioned girls flag as a varsity sport.

Still, words like can have a major impact on kids. In the clip, we see poor little Lena, in tears, saying that words stung so much because of how deeply she loves the sport. And while Stephanie of course told her daughter that “girls can do anything they wanna do,” Lena is at that age where she doesn’t believe mom anymore.

@stephsayitall This one is for the girlies! We’ve hit an age where she doesn’t just believe me anymore. She doesn’t see any girls who ever play football. She’s the only one that joins the boys at recess and she has been getting knocked down pretty hard by others. Please help show my baby that other badass women are out there! #girls #girlies #forthegirls #sports #football #women #girlscandoittoo #girlsbelike #womenssports #powerfulwomen #growingup #show #babygirl #girlmom ♬ original sound - WBsongs


But maybe, just maybe, some words from an Olympian will do just the trick.

“Hi, my sweet girl!” Maher says in a stitched video. “You know what you can play? Rugby.”

She then gives her pitch, saying, “We tackle, we run, we stiff-arm. Dare I say, maybe more fun than football. And! We have the same exact rules as the boys. No differences. So tell your mama to bring you out to some practices. I think you’ll like it.”

@ilonamaher #stitch with @Stephanie Easley ♬ original sound - Ilona Maher

And Maher definitely has a point. Female participation in rugby is at an all-time high,, with the women's game being the fastest-growing area of rugby globally. So plenty of girls are having plenty of fun on the Rugby field in lieu of a football stadium.

Others seemed to agree with Maher and were quick to offer some additional encouragement.

“Aaaannnddd rugby is in the Olympics and football isn’t!” one person chimed.

Another said, “Let’s be honest, rugby is WAY cooler than football!”

Still another mentioned, “Annnnnnnd, you don’t have to wear a helmet,” while a fourth wrote, “Truth be told, Rugby is much tougher than football and I played football,” admitted another commenter. “#Respect.”

That said, Lena was also shown support from football organizations as well. BBC Women’s Football wrote, “Sport if for everyone, don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.”

Women’s Semi Pro Tackle Football Team the Cincinnati Cougar seconded that sentiment, saying, “girls can ABSOLUTELY play football, and we’re proof!” Similarly, women’s hockey team PWHL Sceptres of Toronto wrote, “don’t let anything stop you from playing the sport that you love! The world is a better place with girls and women playing sports.”

Kansas City Glory linebacker Nana Olavuo even invited Lena and her mom to come to watch what would end up being a victorious game for her team. Below, we see Lena getting to celebrate that epic win.

@stephsayitall I have been watching these videos on repeat. @Nana Olavuo🏈🇫🇮 just won a HUGE game agaist a team that went undefeated for four straight seasons and the last season were only beat once… This was a huge game for them in addition to it being their season opener!!! Then let’s add on the fact that this was the largest crowd that they have ever had and obviously a large social media following along with news media presence!!! This was a win. She deserved to feel and celebrate with her team!!! Instead she immediately looked to where my daughter had been previously standing, found her elsewhere, and without hesitation ran directly to her. Instead of celebrating the win in the way, she deserved with her incredible team she shared her win with my little girl!!! my little girl who had been a stranger to her up until incredibly recently. This moment was much bigger than I think the Internet even realizes and to share it with Elena as much bigger than anyone could imagine. These two girls bonded hard and quick.@WNFC @Kansas City Glory #football #girls #girlies #womenssports #womensfootball #changetheworld #forthegirls #sports #women #girlscandoittoo #girlsbelike #powerfulwomen #win #share #bond #besties #little3 #big3 #hoziersyell #onceinalifetime #tripofalifetime ♬ Northern Attitude - Noah Kahan & Hozier


While rugby might still be in Lena’s future, judging by some other subsequent videos, football isn’t going anywhere.

As long as she remembers that she can, in fact, play any sport she wants, we see no problem with that. If she ever forgets, there will be plenty of awesome women her to remind her.

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A rugby player only needed 2 sentences to shut down critics of his relationship's age gap.

Sam Stanley had a short career as a rugby player, but he left a big impact on the game.

Stanley (far right) in action. Photo by Atsushi Tomura/Getty Images.

Stanley came out as gay in 2015 while he was still an active player. He was one of the first pro rugby players to do so.

He said at the time that his teammates and opponents, to his surprise, were overwhelmingly accepting. "What I found especially is that rugby players are a lot more open-minded than I thought," he told QX.

Though he's only 25, he recently walked away from the sport and now spends his days as a personal trainer.

But that doesn't mean life has gotten much quieter.

Stanley has been with his partner, Laurence Hicks, for seven years. But his recent honesty about the relationship brought the haters out of hiding.

The two, who are more than a few years apart in age, met on a niche dating site called SilverDaddies. Stanley doesn't hide or apologize for that (nor should he have to).

But plenty of people have felt the need to chime in on the relationship, especially after Stanley recently announced that they were engaged.

In fact, Stanley writes in an Instagram post that he kept the relationship hidden from most of the world for a long time, likely because he knew not everyone would understand.

"After being a part of each others lives for almost 7 years, [Laurence] has been my pretend godfather, uncle, cousin and many others in order to make sure no one found out about us and that we were a couple."

To those who question the relationship and age gap, Stanley has a beautifully simple response.

"Laurence and I love each other and to us that’s all that matters. We’re proud to represent the many relationships like ours," he told Attitude.

What a great message. With so many of us concerned over "who's with whom for the money" and "who's out of whose league," the most important thing is that those of us who want a relationship find one that makes us truly happy.

Stanley and his fiance are living proof that love doesn't have to look a certain way — it just has to work.

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Fiji won its first gold at the Olympics, and the entire country celebrated.

No one went to work or school on Aug. 11, 2016, in Fiji. Instead, the entire country was glued to the TV.

Thousands of people packed into the ANZ National Stadium in Suva. At Swami Vivekanand College in Nadi, all 700 students were called down to an assembly. Every restaurant, bar, resort, and home in the country was at max capacity with eager-eyed Fijians holding their breaths.

Photo by Feroz Khalil/AFP/Getty Images.

The event? Fiji vs. Great Britain in the rugby sevens final at the Rio Olympics. At stake? Fiji's first ever gold medal in Fiji's most celebrated sport.

When the final whistle sounded, the score was 43-7 in favor of Fiji.

Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images.

Team captain Osea Kolinisau sank to his knees, overcome with emotion at what he and his team had achieved.

The 900,000 people back home in Fiji erupted into unanimous, Earth-shattering celebration.

Photo by Feroz/Khalil/AFP/Getty Images.

It was pure, unadulterated, unstoppable joy.  

Photo by Feroz Khalil/AFP/Getty Images.

The medal is fitting, as Fiji has been dominating rugby on the world stage for a long time despite many obstacles.

The island nation has a smaller budget than other rugby teams and limited training facilities. It also experiences cyclones, which are dangerous tropical weather systems similar to hurricanes that can cause incredible amounts of damage.

The aftermath of Cyclone Winston in February 2016. Photo by Feroz Khalil for Mai Life Magazine via Getty Images.

In February 2016, a category 5 cyclone ripped through Fiji, killing over 40 people and leaving thousands homeless, including two of their rugby players. Despite that, the team remained dedicated and trained the very next day.

"Rugby is like a religion in Fiji," Elenoa Baselaia of the Fiji Times told CNN. "Whether it's with paper scrunched together to make a ball, it's with bottles or a real rugby ball, somebody in the neighborhoods is playing rugby."

Photo by John MacDougal/AFP/Getty Images.

On Aug. 11, Fijians celebrated in stadiums, erupted into cheers at bars and in their homes, and eventually took to the streets, waving Fijian flags and jumping for joy.

Fiji Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama was among those celebrating, and he even declared the day a public holiday.

“We’ve got celebrations programmed for when [the team] returns. We are all proud to be Fijians right now,” said Bainimarama.

Even if you don't know much about Fiji (or rugby), it's moments like these that remind me why we celebrate the Olympics.

Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images.

Fiji has had a rough year, but they've earned their moment in the spotlight.

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9 adorable pics of a Brazilian rugby player getting proposed to by her girlfriend.

'I wanted to show people that love wins.'

There were tears, laughs, and balloons after the Brazilian women's rugby team finished playing on Aug. 8, 2016, at the Rio Olympics.

But none of that had anything to do with the team snagging a medal (Team Brazil finished ninth, after all).

It had to do with one couple's very special moment.

Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images.

Player Isadora Cerullo was brought to tears because she'd just been proposed to by her girlfriend, Marjorie Enya.

Cerullo had just worked her magic on the rugby pitch, and Enya is the manager at the Olympic venue where the women's matches went down.

So the scene really couldn't have been more fitting.

Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images.

The couple, who both live in Sao Paulo, have been together for two years.

Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images.

And under the bright lights of Deodoro Stadium, they decided to make it official.

Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images.

"I know rugby people are amazing and they would embrace it," Enya said about the proposal, according to the BBC. "She is the love of my life."

Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images.

Two women kissing on the world stage shows just how far we've come when it comes to LGBTQ rights and visibility.

Throughout the past 15 years, marriage equality has crept across much of the globe, predominantly in Europe and the Americas. Currently, same-sex marriage is legal nationwide in 21 countries (and counting).

Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images.

But the global spread of marriage equality doesn't tell the whole story.

Progress usually results in pushback — and it has certainly, and unfortunately, been the case when it comes to the rights of LGBTQ people.

Homosexuality is still banned in far more places than where same-sex marriage is recognized. In several countries, it's punishable by death.

And while many Americans celebrated the Supreme Court decision that legalized marriage equality nationwide, a global push for more tolerance by the Obama administration may be causing more harm than good in certain regions of the globe, as it's "triggered people’s defense mechanism" against progress.

In the U.S., the rise of costly, transphobic "bathroom bills" shows how an unintended consequence of progress is oftentimes emboldened bigotry. And in Brazil — where Enya and Cerullo's engagement was largely met with elation and where same-sex marriage has been legal since 2013 — an alarming rise in anti-LGBTQ violence has put many officials on edge.

The current global climate of LGBTQ rights and protections is far more complicated than many people realize.

Despite the challenges that remain, however, Cerullo and Enya's beautiful engagement reflects a world that's, overall, becoming increasingly open to LGBTQ love.

Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images.

And the power of that moment certainly wasn't lost on Enya, who said she wasn't nervous to pop the question so publicly.  

Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images.

As she noted, "I wanted to show people that love wins."

It seems like she did just that.

Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images.

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