- Published
The changing room is busy with footballers going through their pre-match routines.
asserted
footballers → publish → routines
Some stretch and tighten their boots, others embrace.
asserted
others → stretch → boots
"Be strong as always because we are representing Afghan women," says midfielder Fatima Haidari to fellow members of Afghan Women United.
asserted
Haidari → represent → United
Applause erupts in the room where an Afghan flag hangs and a patriotic song is played.
asserted
song → erupt → room
As the women sing along some struggle to hold back tears.
asserted
some → sing → tears
There's a final team huddle with words of encouragement from their coach before they head out to the pitch – a place that for years they had been told they did not belong.
asserted
they → be → years
The 23-player squad, selected from Afghan players now living abroad, has travelled to New Zealand for a training camp and to play two unofficial friendly games against the Cook Islands.
asserted
squad → select → Islands
This is the first time they have been together since football governing body Fifa ruled in April that they could represent their country in official matches in the future.
uncertain
they → rule → future
Previously, they would have needed the approval of the Afghanistan Football Federation.
asserted
they → need → Federation
This was not possible under the Taliban, who returned to power in August 2021, imposing wide-ranging restrictions on women and girls, including barring them from secondary school and university, most professions and organised sport.
asserted
who → return → school
The country's national women's team, formed in 2007, could no longer play and its members were among those evacuated and resettled in countries including Australia, the UK and Portugal.
uncertain
members → form → Australia
Years of campaigning led to the creation of a refugee team, which became Afghan Women United.
asserted
which → lead → team
Thanks to Fifa's ruling, it can now try to qualify for international competitions such as the Olympics and World Cup.
asserted
it → try → Olympics
Gathered in New Zealand, the squad is excited to be playing together - as asylum seekers living in various countries it has been hard for them to get the travel documents in order to train as a team over the past five years.
asserted
them → gather → years
Sitting in the hotel in Auckland the day before the match, Manozh Noori, who has short hair, wears a T-shirt and knee-length shorts - a look that she says has often drawn criticism from relatives for looking too masculine.
asserted
she → sit → relatives
As the 23-year-old speaks to BBC Global Women about her family, her voice begins to falter.
asserted
voice → speak → family
She pauses, takes a deep breath and looks away for a moment before continuing.
asserted
She → pause → moment
There are no tears, but the emotion is clear.
asserted
emotion → be → ?
Noori now lives in Australia but she grew up playing football with boys in the streets of Kabul.
asserted
she → live → Kabul
After seeing women's football on television, she secretly joined local clubs and gradually rose through the ranks in Afghanistan.
asserted
she → see → Afghanistan
She knew her older brother would disapprove so she tried to reduce the risk of being recognised by wearing a face covering.
asserted
she → know → covering
Over six years, she won league titles, national championships and individual awards.
asserted
she → win → titles
Eventually her success became impossible to hide.
asserted
success → become → ?
In about 2018 her fellow players persuaded her to remove her face covering for a TV interview, which was shown on the news along with highlights of their match.
asserted
which → persuade → match
Then she had to face the reality that her brother might see it.
uncertain
brother → have → it
"I was so scared," she recalls.
asserted
she → recall → ?
"I kept thinking, 'He's going to see me.
asserted
He → keep → me
He's going to know.'
asserted
He → go → ?
"
In desperation, she tried to stop the family from watching the news by turning off the electricity, but word soon reached her brother and he was furious, she says.
asserted
she → try → brother
"He was screaming," Noori says.
asserted
Noori → scream → ?
"'You told us you were studying.
asserted
you → tell → us
You said you wanted to become a teacher or a doctor.
asserted
you → say → ?
He threatened to cut his ties with the family if she didn't stop, she adds.
asserted
she → threaten → family
"My mother was crying.
asserted
mother → cry → ?
She told me, 'He's the person who supports us financially.
asserted
who → tell → us
How are we going to survive?'"
Noori did stop playing for a while, but eventually started again.
asserted
Noori → go → while
She says her other brother, who lives in Germany, sent money to help finance her dream.
asserted
who → say → dream
When the Taliban took over in 2021, Noori decided to flee, but first she buried her football medals and trophies in the garden of her family home.
asserted
she → take → home
More than four years later, they remain there.
asserted
they → remain → ?
"One day I will go back and dig them out," she says, briefly smiling at the thought.
"Football helped me get my mum and sister out of Afghanistan," she says.
asserted
she → go → Afghanistan
…and 39 more, not listed.
The Aporia
