More than her scars - Football turns McKenzie’s fight for survival into new journey

Amoy McKenzie’s entire life has been defined by struggle.

As an infant, she miraculously survived a catastrophic incident that left her with life-threatening burns and permanent scars across her body.

As a teenager, the battle shifted inward, plunging her into a years-long struggle with depression as she wrestled with feelings of rejection.

Today, the 21-year-old midfielder is ready to claim a new chapter in her journey, strengthened by her deep love for football.

In a raw and deeply moving declaration, McKenzie has chosen to step out of the shadows, embracing her scars not as marks of tragedy, but as the armour of a survivor determined to conquer the pitch.

“I got them when I was a baby, like one-year-old. My mom and this lady were in some kind of fight, I guess. And one day she was walking, passing the yard, and the lady threw acid over the wall. And my mom had me in her arms, so everything caught me,” she recounted.

Surviving the attack was her first major battle, but escaping with her life ushered in a difficult reality, severe burns that scarred much of her body, including her face, and would affect the course of her life.

McKenzie, one of the stars of the Jamaica Women’s Premier League (JWPL), began her senior career at Arnett Gardens and now plays for Proven Girls.

As the revamped league seeks to give players a voice, the former Holy Trinity High School player revealed in a recent interview on the JWPL’s Instagram page that football became her refuge:

“The environment (Maxfield Avenue) that I grew up in, I grew up watching football, my father (Nigel McKenzie) and my aunt (Odesa McKenzie) used to play football so it was just something that I just picked up. I have been playing in the Premier League for like two years now. My proudest moment, I would say, was scoring my first goal when I was playing for Arnett Gardens. Football has made me very disciplined and hardworking. It made me go for my goals more. When I’m on the field, I don’t seem different. I seem like everyone else,” McKenzie said.

As she grew older, McKenzie struggled to accept her body, forever altered by an act of violence in which she was an innocent victim.

“Four years ago, I was in a very dark place, fighting depression. And I was just there going along with the emotions. There was no one for me to like talk to. So I wasn’t talking to anyone really. And the only thing I looked forward to was playing ball. When I was on the field, I didn’t feel anything. I just, I see myself in the ball. So, yeah, football took me out of a very, very, very dark place,” McKenzie admitted.

The football field is a place where all eyes are on the players, but McKenzie finds acceptance among her peers, even if that has not always been the case with the wider public.

“I think they (players) see the real me as a person who’s been through a lot, not my scars. (But) people tend to judge before, like, they just see and judge. They don’t ask questions. They tend to scorn. I wish they would see me first besides the scars,” McKenzie shared, her voice breaking with emotion.

Faced with a crossroads in her life, she had to make a choice: allow despair to consume her or find the strength to move forward.

“I would say four years ago, when I was like 16, 17, I had to come to the realisation that it’s not going to change and this is just me. To be honest, I’d rather carry the burden than anyone else in my family. I never felt like it was unfair. I felt like I was chosen to carry it.”

McKenzie is grateful for the platform provided by the women’s league, but she also wanted to take ownership of her story.

“I wanted to talk because I want others to know that, sometimes, you don’t always need someone to lift you up, you can do it yourself. So if you don’t have someone, as long as you have yourself and you have hope, it can lead you a long way. I would say don’t let your past define you. You are more than what has happened. Your scars, your problems, your struggles don’t define you as a person. You are much more than that. And I just want to say a big thank you to JWPL for this opportunity for me to be seen and for others to see that this fight, these struggles, from doing what you love, can go a long way, and you’ll have fun doing it,” the midfield maestro declared.