From Disneyland to rugby’s big dance: How tiny Desi became a big deal in footy

Aunt Gail Miller won a famous gold medal at the Sydney Olympics in the Australian water polo team in 2000, and her uncle Paul Miller boxed at the Sydney Games, too, and won a Commonwealth Games gold medal in 2002.

Miller’s dad Anthony was a nationally ranked swimmer and good rugby player, too, in the same Brisbane school team as John Eales and as a flanker at Norths.

Anthony hardly a black sheep of the Miller clan, though: he was last year appointed chief executive officer of Westpac.

“He is a very high achiever, too,” Miller said “My dad was a very competitive swimmer, he didn’t quite crack the Olympics, but he was a massive workhorse. So I definitely had a lot of people in my life that showed me the value of work ethic, especially in the sporting realm. And it made me believe, ‘oh, it’s possible, I can go do that too’.”

Miller was one of those Energizer bunny kids who excelled at gymnastics and dancing from a young age. It wasn’t unusual to be out the door at 6am and back at 9pm.

In the gym, Miller was a state representative on the floor, beam, bars and vault, and in the dance studio, she performed in ballet, tap, jazz, hip-hop and contemporary disciplines.

“We used to travel around the world every couple of years (for dance),” Miller said.

“We competed in Spain and in America, we even performed at Disneyland. I’ve performed at Disneyland three times. It was amazing. I got to travel the world.”

Going to school in Sydney’s inner-west, and in Hong Kong during her teenage years, Miller also somehow found time to play other sports. Lots of them.

“I was a diver, a tennis player, I played soccer, did a bit of basketball, I was too short for that. And netball and hockey, too – just a bunch of sports,” she said.

“I felt (dance) helped me translate so much, especially whenever I tried a new sport, I was always balanced and coordinated. Same with gymnastics, I had that power and strength. So when I made the turn to rugby, it was kind of combining everything – and adding the contact part that I was missing out on for all those years.”

In mid-2021, with COVID-19 still stalking the world, Miller was looking for a new team sport and to make some new mates. A friend suggested rugby and Miller rolled up at Easts where she was introduced to the game via sevens, and then 15s. It was love at first tackle bag.

“I was like, ‘this is amazing’. I absolutely love it,” Miller said.

Miller’s pace and strength immediately saw her stand out for Easts, and halfway through 2022, she was invited to train with the NSW women’s sevens squad. That turned into 15-a-side squad training with the Waratahs’ Super W squad, and in 2023, Miller made her debut for the Tahs against the Force.

In the same year, Miller was chosen for the Wallaroos squad and made her debut against England. In the years since, Miller has become a mainstay for NSW and Australia. Her statistics make for eye-popping reading.

In 17 games for NSW, Miller has scored 17 tries, made 35 linebreaks and 28 offloads, and beaten a whopping 73 defenders. In 12 Tests, Miller has scored 7 tries, 24 linebreaks and beaten 48 defenders.

This year, the Super Rugby women’s competition saw several Aussie sevens stars switch to 15s for a few games, in an attempt to make the 2025 Rugby World Cup squad. After electing to not return to the sevens series, Charlotte Caslick will play for Queensland in the decider at North Sydney Oval.

Many believe the selection of try-scoring machine Maddi Levi – who was world’s best sevens player last year -in the Wallaroos’ squad should be a formality.

But the testament of how well the incumbent Wallaroos wingers, Miller and Maya Stewart (who was the Wallaroos’ MVP last year) are both playing, Levi currently wouldn’t unseat either. A bench role is the more likely scenario.

“I think she’s phenomenal. It’s great for the game and the Wallaroos because it’ll challenge us and everyone should want to be challenged – it makes you a better player,” Miller said.

“Maya and I, we’ve talked about it and we’re the same. We both want the best possible squad at the World Cup. We are there to win.”