Tileah bloomed away from home, but profound events also occurred upon her return

It was 2020, and the initial onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic had derailed McGrady's new life in Gympie with her partner, Joseph Wade, forcing them to return to Moree.

And there the couple have remained, as they created a world that became even more meaningful upon the birth of their daughter, Jaeari, in November 2022.

"She says: 'Go football!'" McGrady - a Moree Boar, like Wade - said of Jaeari when the child is watching their games.

The couple became an item when McGrady returned to her hometown after finishing high school in Sydney. The 26-year-old had boarded at Abbotsleigh from years 7-12.

"I'm thankful for my mum and dad because they sent me away," she said, adding that she had way more sporting and educational opportunities at Abbotsleigh than she would have had back home.

The highlight of her sporting achievements in Sydney was making a NSW Combined Independent Schools touch side.

While settling down in the North West was not a given, she has no regrets: "Moree's my home."

McGrady's other home is the Boars. She debuted for the club at age 16 - winning back-to-back premierships in her first two seasons as a Boar, when the club was in Group 19.

Now in Group 4, Moree are chasing their first premiership since returning to that competition in 2021.

This season, they are in sixth place on the ladder - eight points behind fourth-placed Dungowan. They travel to Gunnedah on Sunday, July 7.

"My challenge and our team's challenge is to be up there with the top four sides," said McGrady, whose ex-Gympie Devil beau is Moree's first-grade No. 12.

Another profound experience in the young mum's life is her work as a student learning support officer at Moree East Public School.

"I love working with the kids," said the passionate teacher's aide, who is immersed in a sea of love: "The McGradys are a massive family."

So while a foreign invader, in the form of a virulent disease that brought the world to its knees, precipitated the demise of McGrady's new existence in Queensland, she returned to what she described as "a big support system".

And she is experiencing that familiar, warm embrace with the love of her life and a priceless gift.

"She's the light of my life," McGrady said of her daughter.