Red Deer’s Hallie Ross overcomes ACL injury to earn England soccer academy spot

Ross grew up playing with the Red Deer Renegades Club team and had been exploring universities to attend once she graduated. However, that all came crashing down with the injury.

“I wasn’t even sure what I was supposed to do anymore because I hadn’t signed with a team yet. It was my time to make a commitment to a school but it was difficult when I wasn’t even going to be back until a year later,” she said.

Ross was so devastated by the injury that she stopped applying to schools because she couldn’t attend any ID camps. She also had to wait for surgery.

“Not many people come back from an injury like that, so no coaches were really interested in looking at a player if they couldn’t even watch them play,” she added.

“It was hard mentally because I wasn’t with all my friends. It was almost like I lost myself. I had to figure out who I was without sports.”

That was until May this year when she was contacted by a soccer recruiter from Sheffield.

He’d watched her at an ID camp a few years earlier and saved her highlight reel. After a few video calls, he invited her to join the IDA team at Sheffield University.

Ross had ACL surgery in November 2024 and started working out four months later on the field and in the weight room.

“It took so long to get here and I’m so glad. It took so much effort and hard work,” she added. “[Playing] will help to see how I love the competition. After this knee injury, a big thing for me was if I will still love the competition and the early morning workouts.”

The IDA team at Sheffield University allows student athletes from all over the world get a world-class education while also taking part in elite football training.

From September until May, she’ll play approximately four games monthly against other teams across England, but the academy is meant to help players earn opportunities to play elsewhere. They’ll be practicing and training five days a week.

“I’m not sure what I want to do after this year. I still want to pursue soccer at the college level, but I don’t know where. I guess we’ll see after this year in England,” she said.

“My goal for this year is to continue to play soccer and earn a spot in the U.S. or Canada. I just want to play in a good league, even here in Red Deer. We have such an amazing soccer program with the RDP Queens.”

Ross has played since three-years-old, alongside her twin sister, as a way for their parents to tire them out due to their high-energy personalities.

Little did she know it would quickly become her passion and something she wanted to pursue as a career, or as a stepping stone to more possibilities.

“I didn’t want this injury to overtake me, but I never thought I’d be going somewhere like England to play soccer. It’s really amazing.”

by Ian Gustafson

Red Deer’s Hallie Ross overcomes ACL injury to earn England soccer academy spot

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