Written by Megan Taylor, sports reporter covering international sports since 2020
Fremantle Starlight Purple Haze Game preparations will carry extra meaning on Thursday night, with the Dockers to wear warm-up tops designed by seven-year-old Paige McKay before their clash with Sydney at Optus Stadium.
Paige’s design will feature as part of Fremantle’s 24th annual Starlight Purple Haze Game, a major club fixture that raises funds for seriously ill children through the Starlight Children’s Foundation.
The night follows another major AFL story, with Carlton surviving a late Richmond scare to claim a seventh straight win in a tense MCG finish.
Paige’s Courage Inspires Dockers
Paige’s medical journey began when she lost fine motor skills in her right hand, before weakness in her right leg and morning sickness led to urgent hospital checks.
An MRI later found a Pilocytic Astrocytoma, a brain tumour that affected one of her ventricles and caused dangerous fluid build-up.
She went through emergency brain surgeries, shunts, a port insertion and chemotherapy, before a third emergency surgery was needed when the tumour grew quickly.
Paige’s condition has since stabilised after trial medication and ongoing occupational, physio and speech therapy.
Starlight Bond Runs Deep
“We love Starlight. Starlight is what gets us through this entire medical journey,” Ami McKay said.
“To imagine not having the Starlight opportunities here, what a horrible experience that would have been to see.”
Paige said her design came from a simple idea.
“I drew the stars, I just started by drawing a line and another line and then it was a star,” Paige said. “But my favourite part is the rocket ship.”
“I like watching football,” Paige said. “I’ve been at the actual stadium before, watching the actual game and that was really fun. I want to be a girl Docker one day.”
Serong Sees Bigger Picture
The Starlight Purple Haze Game has raised more than $3.6 million since 2003, with fans able to pledge money for every Fremantle goal against Sydney.
South32 will match pledges up to $100,000, while wands and beanies sold at the ground will support the foundation.
“It’s incredibly powerful coming and just seeing how much a small interaction can just mean so much to these kids,” Caleb Serong said.
Official details on the charity’s work are available through the Starlight Children’s Foundation.
