THE CLICHÉ when Irish clubs acquire foreign players is that they will need time to adapt and adjust to the rhythm and pace of the Premier Division.
However, this year, in both men’s and women’s top flights, a pre-season signing from abroad sits at the top of the scoring charts.
In the men’s game, New Zealand international Moses Dyer has been the league’s most prolific player with nine goals since joining Galway in January.
For Shelbourne Women, Mackenzie Anthony has had a similarly positive impact.
The 23-year-old American has eight league goals from seven starts, leaving her joint top-scorer in the Premier Division alongside Athlone Town’s New York-born forward Kelly Brady.
Brady recently pipped Anthony to April’s Player of the Month award, and it looks like it could be a race between the two Americans for the Golden Boot.
Anthony’s background is in college football in the US, while studying for a degree in advertising management.
Last autumn, she graduated from Michigan State University after two years there, having previously played three seasons at Baylor University in Texas.
Anthony subsequently went on trial with teams in the US, but had never been to Europe before and wanted to go “just for the culture and the experience”.
She considered Scandinavian countries but was keen to play somewhere where the main language was English.
Ireland had not been on her radar until Eoin Wearen got in touch last February.
The Shelbourne manager had previously coached in Anthony’s home city, Chicago. He had never met Anthony during that time, but did coach one of her best friends in football, Bella Najera.
Anthony also spoke with another US-born footballer, Maggie Pierce, who had a similar background in high-level college football and who spent two years at Shelbourne before departing at the end of 2024.
Three weeks after Wearen initially got in touch, Anthony received her holiday visa and was ready to go for the new season.
Mackenzie Anthony has been in flying form this season for Shels.
— League of Ireland (@LeagueofIreland) May 7, 2025
Advertisement
The young striker has enjoyed her time in Ireland so far and finds it very “different” to her US football experience.
“It’s very technical and very much touch play, quick passes, which I feel like, in the States, you’re dribbling a lot more, I would say, especially up in the attack,” Anthony tells The 42.
“I thought it was interesting — everybody knows everybody in this league.
“People are dropping first names and it was funny because I didn’t realise, everyone’s been playing against each other for years, or even with each other, which I guess it is how it is in the States, but not to that extent, where everybody knows everybody’s strengths, everybody’s weaknesses, in and out.”
The Wheaton, Illinois native couldn’t have asked for a much better start, averaging better than a goal a game in the league and coming off the bench to score an equaliser in their 1-1 draw with Bohemians in the All-Island Cup last weekend.
The US star also describes her adjustment off the pitch as “smoother than I thought it was going to be”.
Based in Castleknock, she is roommates with Shelbourne goalkeeper Amanda McQuillan and recently got a Bernese Mountain Dog named Murphy to “hang out with all day”.
Anthony has been able to get away for short trips to England and Spain during breaks in the season, and soon plans on visiting Italy with fellow American Shels player Gabby DelPico.
She compares this stint at Shelbourne to a “semester abroad” and finds it less exhausting compared to the lifestyle she was accustomed to in the States.
“I was going to get a part-time job at a coffee shop. I still might, but I just have so much time,” she adds.
“What’s nice about this league, actually, is you do get so much time. Because I know in America, in college, your life revolves around soccer.
“School was part of it, but I feel like it was mainly just soccer that consumed you.
“So it’s been nice having more of a balance, getting to do so much more, and travel and explore.”
The downside is that Anthony is playing in a part-time league where only some clubs pay travelling expenses.
“I would say I do wish it was more like full time, but it has given me the freedom to do more and just relax after five years of very intense soccer and it also gives my body a little break, I’d say, just not training as much — I feel like I’m able to recover better.
“But in the future, I do think I’d want to go back to being more full-time. I could do that, play professionally, full-time.”
In the US, Anthony would play twice a week and train four times, meaning she invariably got one day off a week.
“And even on that day off, we would have to be doing treatment, massages, still going in to lift, maybe, an optional lift and rehab, just injury stuff,” she explains.
Anthony believes this background is part of the reason why she has looked so impressive since moving to Shelbourne.
In the States, however, she did not always thrive in the demanding environment.
“It’s easy to lose that love for the game when it has become such a monotonous thing.
“But here I’m excited for training. I’m excited for the games. It’s not like I wasn’t excited then, but I feel like I would get nervous before games. And here, I don’t, which has been really freeing, I would say.”
She is not anticipating a lengthy career in the game but hopes to compete at a high level for “at least” another four years.
“Coming here, I was hoping I’d figure out more what I’d want to do once I’m done with playing,” she says. “But I don’t really know.”
Anthony grew up competing in tennis and soccer, ultimately deciding to focus on the latter while in eighth grade.
“My parents were like: ‘You’ve got to pick a sport. It’s too much money to pay for two.’”
At the age of just 14, Anthony’s footballing talent led to her being recruited by Baylor University.
It took the pressure off the final years of high school, knowing she had a college place secured.
“My friends were all going through it when they were juniors and seniors. It was nice that I didn’t have to worry about any of it.”
While appreciative of the opportunities soccer has afforded her, Anthony admits there have been some dark moments too, such as when she missed an entire season after suffering an ACL injury in her second year of college.
“There was a lot of being like: ‘Do I even want to play anymore?’ Asking those questions. There was a point when my dad told me to quit because it got so stressful.
“I remember it was my fourth year, spring, and I was just really down and no confidence, nothing.
“And then I went and did Summer League [an amateur and semi-professional competition that US college players can avail of in the off-season], and I loved the game again. I was playing, and I was having fun with it. And you just, you remember [why I played in the first place]
“So there’s going to be ups and downs — it [applies] everywhere. Just know, throughout your career, you’re going to have so many ups and downs, and that’s just normal. It’s not normal to be only up — then something’s wrong.”
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Close
Comments
This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic.
Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy
here
before taking part.
The American college graduate who has taken Irish football by storm
THE CLICHÉ when Irish clubs acquire foreign players is that they will need time to adapt and adjust to the rhythm and pace of the Premier Division.
However, this year, in both men’s and women’s top flights, a pre-season signing from abroad sits at the top of the scoring charts.
In the men’s game, New Zealand international Moses Dyer has been the league’s most prolific player with nine goals since joining Galway in January.
For Shelbourne Women, Mackenzie Anthony has had a similarly positive impact.
The 23-year-old American has eight league goals from seven starts, leaving her joint top-scorer in the Premier Division alongside Athlone Town’s New York-born forward Kelly Brady.
Brady recently pipped Anthony to April’s Player of the Month award, and it looks like it could be a race between the two Americans for the Golden Boot.
Anthony’s background is in college football in the US, while studying for a degree in advertising management.
Last autumn, she graduated from Michigan State University after two years there, having previously played three seasons at Baylor University in Texas.
Anthony subsequently went on trial with teams in the US, but had never been to Europe before and wanted to go “just for the culture and the experience”.
She considered Scandinavian countries but was keen to play somewhere where the main language was English.
Ireland had not been on her radar until Eoin Wearen got in touch last February.
The Shelbourne manager had previously coached in Anthony’s home city, Chicago. He had never met Anthony during that time, but did coach one of her best friends in football, Bella Najera.
Anthony also spoke with another US-born footballer, Maggie Pierce, who had a similar background in high-level college football and who spent two years at Shelbourne before departing at the end of 2024.
Three weeks after Wearen initially got in touch, Anthony received her holiday visa and was ready to go for the new season.
The young striker has enjoyed her time in Ireland so far and finds it very “different” to her US football experience.
“It’s very technical and very much touch play, quick passes, which I feel like, in the States, you’re dribbling a lot more, I would say, especially up in the attack,” Anthony tells The 42.
“I thought it was interesting — everybody knows everybody in this league.
“People are dropping first names and it was funny because I didn’t realise, everyone’s been playing against each other for years, or even with each other, which I guess it is how it is in the States, but not to that extent, where everybody knows everybody’s strengths, everybody’s weaknesses, in and out.”
The Wheaton, Illinois native couldn’t have asked for a much better start, averaging better than a goal a game in the league and coming off the bench to score an equaliser in their 1-1 draw with Bohemians in the All-Island Cup last weekend.
The US star also describes her adjustment off the pitch as “smoother than I thought it was going to be”.
Based in Castleknock, she is roommates with Shelbourne goalkeeper Amanda McQuillan and recently got a Bernese Mountain Dog named Murphy to “hang out with all day”.
Anthony has been able to get away for short trips to England and Spain during breaks in the season, and soon plans on visiting Italy with fellow American Shels player Gabby DelPico.
She compares this stint at Shelbourne to a “semester abroad” and finds it less exhausting compared to the lifestyle she was accustomed to in the States.
“I was going to get a part-time job at a coffee shop. I still might, but I just have so much time,” she adds.
“What’s nice about this league, actually, is you do get so much time. Because I know in America, in college, your life revolves around soccer.
“School was part of it, but I feel like it was mainly just soccer that consumed you.
“So it’s been nice having more of a balance, getting to do so much more, and travel and explore.”
The downside is that Anthony is playing in a part-time league where only some clubs pay travelling expenses.
“I would say I do wish it was more like full time, but it has given me the freedom to do more and just relax after five years of very intense soccer and it also gives my body a little break, I’d say, just not training as much — I feel like I’m able to recover better.
“But in the future, I do think I’d want to go back to being more full-time. I could do that, play professionally, full-time.”
In the US, Anthony would play twice a week and train four times, meaning she invariably got one day off a week.
“And even on that day off, we would have to be doing treatment, massages, still going in to lift, maybe, an optional lift and rehab, just injury stuff,” she explains.
Anthony believes this background is part of the reason why she has looked so impressive since moving to Shelbourne.
In the States, however, she did not always thrive in the demanding environment.
“It’s easy to lose that love for the game when it has become such a monotonous thing.
“But here I’m excited for training. I’m excited for the games. It’s not like I wasn’t excited then, but I feel like I would get nervous before games. And here, I don’t, which has been really freeing, I would say.”
She is not anticipating a lengthy career in the game but hopes to compete at a high level for “at least” another four years.
“Coming here, I was hoping I’d figure out more what I’d want to do once I’m done with playing,” she says. “But I don’t really know.”
Anthony grew up competing in tennis and soccer, ultimately deciding to focus on the latter while in eighth grade.
“My parents were like: ‘You’ve got to pick a sport. It’s too much money to pay for two.’”
At the age of just 14, Anthony’s footballing talent led to her being recruited by Baylor University.
It took the pressure off the final years of high school, knowing she had a college place secured.
“My friends were all going through it when they were juniors and seniors. It was nice that I didn’t have to worry about any of it.”
While appreciative of the opportunities soccer has afforded her, Anthony admits there have been some dark moments too, such as when she missed an entire season after suffering an ACL injury in her second year of college.
“There was a lot of being like: ‘Do I even want to play anymore?’ Asking those questions. There was a point when my dad told me to quit because it got so stressful.
“I remember it was my fourth year, spring, and I was just really down and no confidence, nothing.
“And then I went and did Summer League [an amateur and semi-professional competition that US college players can avail of in the off-season], and I loved the game again. I was playing, and I was having fun with it. And you just, you remember [why I played in the first place]
“So there’s going to be ups and downs — it [applies] everywhere. Just know, throughout your career, you’re going to have so many ups and downs, and that’s just normal. It’s not normal to be only up — then something’s wrong.”
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
college graduate Interview mackenzie anthony Soccer Ireland Republic Shelbourne Women's Premier Division