The legendary Aussie sporting couple who met in primary school
We might not be the biggest cricket fans in the world, but we can definitely get around a good love story.
Mitchell Starc and Alyssa Healy are both Australian cricketers, but their story goes much further back than that.
The pair actually met in primary school when they were just nine years old, competing against each other in Sydney's Northern District Junior Cricket Association.
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Mitchell Starc and Alyssa Healy met way back in primary school when they were just nine years old. Getty
It was only one year later that they found themselves on the same team, coached by Starc's dad, Paul.
The duo remained friends and teammates throughout their teens, with Starc revealing back in 2013 that he definitely "took a bit of a liking to the little blonde keeper."
Eventually it became hard to deny that there was something more than friendship between the two.
Healy told the Sydney Morning Herald that she and Starc "probably got together around 18" after spending time together in Brisbane.
"I was up there playing hockey for NSW, and Mitch was training with the National Performance Squad," she said.
"We had a horrific tournament, went out for some drinks, so did some of the cricket boys and we hung out.
"And then we were home and all of a sudden we were hanging out more. It was no real romantic story."
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The couple married in 2016. Instagram
Starc explained that the two kind of just fell in to the relationship, "The week before I went away on my first Australian tour – I realised I had been seeing Alyssa almost every day for a long, long while.
"It felt a bit weird asking but it was like, "Are we dating now?" It just happened."
The pair got engaged in 2015 and were married by 2016.
Now both in their early thirties, Starc and Healy are still happily married with two pet staffies by their side.
And their relationship is no stranger to a bit of healthy competition.
Back in 2020, the duo revealed that each year play each other in golf, the winner receives the 'Stealy Cup'.
"We play a fair bit of golf, and we take it relatively seriously," Starc told the Sydney Morning Herald.
"We were having a few beers after a round at Long Reef Golf Club one day, and figured we needed a points system."
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The duo shared that one of the biggest struggles in their relationship is finding the time to see each other. Getty
However, due to their busy schedules, Cricket's golden couple revealed that it's hard to find time to spend together.
"It's hard enough juggling one cricket schedule let alone two, but we've done it for a long time," said Starc
"We're used to having a relationship through a phone. It makes moments like this more special, and harder to give up. There's no easy answer – we just find gaps where we can."
The couple shared that they have six weeks of leave they get to spend together, but outside of that, it's just a matter of making it work when they can.
Although many couples will joke that the best way to stay together is to spend time apart, Starc and Healy don't seem to share that sentiment.
"You might feel that way if you've been married for 20 years and side by side the whole time," said Starc in 2020, "but we've been married for four years, and, well, we'd like to actually spend some time together."
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