Rob McKie hauntingly remembers the last words he ever said to Ashleigh Connor."Ash, be careful driving home."Hours later, a close-knit football team was struggling to come to terms with the loss of one of its star female strikers - a gifted young woman regarded by many as family.Ashleigh's body was found in the wreckage of her car on Appin Rd, Cataract, yesterday morning.She had left a meeting with her Illawarra Stingrays team-mates at Fairy Meadow's Fraternity Club at 9 o'clock the previous night but her damaged vehicle was not discovered until 8am yesterday.Police believe Ashleigh was travelling north on Appin Rd sometime after 9.30pm on Wednesday when her car veered off the road and crashed into a tree about 4km past the F6 turn-off.Ashleigh had driven from her Rosemeadow home that afternoon for her weekly football training with the Stingrays. The session was cancelled due to wet weather and the team went to the Fraternity Club for a meeting.
Stingrays striker Ashleigh Connor dies in crash Mr McKie, president of the Illawarra Stingrays, said as the group left the club at 9pm to head home, he told Ashleigh to drive carefully."She grinned at me and said 'Rob, I'm not on my motorbike, I'm in the car' before heading off," he said.But Ashleigh never made it home. Police are unsure when the crash occurred, but say the vehicle was not spotted until shortly after 8am by a passing motorist.The notorious road, with a 100km/h speed limit between Bulli Tops and Appin, features a number of sweeping bends and falls away sharply at the edges.It is the most direct route from Wollongong to Campbelltown and provides access to Appin's West Cliff colliery.The area where the crash occurred had been resealed within the past year.Police said emergency services were called to the scene but the 21-year-old was already dead.Mr McKie said he was gutted when he heard the news."You don't believe something like this could happen," he said."It's truly devastating for everyone in the football community."Her family are obviously distraught, you wouldn't expect anything else."The team is in absolute shock, as is the rest of the club."Distressed friends of the young woman took to social media yesterday to express their grief and sorrow.A Facebook page called "RIP Ash Connor, Forever in our hearts" received hundreds of posts and was "liked" by more than 1200 within two hours of being set up.Mr McKie described Ashleigh as a "target player with a lethal shot", saying she was one of the best he'd seen and a "major part of the club".But he also spoke of her bubbly personality, both on and off the field."She had a cheekiness about her; she got her fair share of yellow cards," he said."But we knew what we were getting with Ash, and we loved every minute of it."She was a fun-loving, lovely person."The tragedy has cast a heavy pall over the club, which has until now been riding high on the thrill of success, including back-to-back grand final titles and an impressive 2011 season so far atop the NSW Women's Premier League ladder.The team had also celebrated the recent announcement that the South Coast could field a team for the women's national league within 18 months and former team-mate Caitlin Foord's selection for the Matildas Women's Football World Cup side.Last night, Foord's mother Simone was trying to contact her daughter to tell her the news."She will be devastated and upset she can't be here," Mrs Foord said.Another soccer identity close to Ashleigh and reeling from the information is her long-time coach and mentor Brett Wallin.The Stingrays coach, who first saw Ashleigh's talent while coaching her in the Macarthur Rams under-14s side, described her as "a good friend and mentor", saying the two shared a special bond."We had a close friendship - I held her in as high esteem as she held me," he said."She was one of those few players that when she talked, I listened."The news was quick to reach the greater football community yesterday, with Matildas captain Melissa Barbieri posting a tribute to Ashleigh on her Facebook page."Women's football has lost a bright star, RIP Ash Connor," she wrote."She will be missed by those who were lucky enough to play with her, against her and those who only knew her from afar."Heaven must have needed a striker. Gone too soon."Ashleigh joined the Stingrays in 2009 after successful seasons with the Rams and Marconi Stallions, a national W-League debut with Central Coast Mariners and a term at the NSW Institute of Sport.She also tasted international representation in 2007, playing for Australia in the Young Matildas squad at the FIFA U20 Women's World Cup Qualifiers.But Mr Wallin said in the Stingrays, Ashleigh had found a home. "The Stingrays became her family," he said, adding the team would struggle without her on and off the field."We won't cope without Ash," he said. "We'll get on with our lives, but how do you cope as a football team? We don't have another one of her."Mr Wallin said Ashleigh would want the team to move forward.A match scheduled for Sunday is in doubt, as the club considers whether to seek a postponement given the extenuating circumstances.
