Melissa Ray
Personal information
Full name Melissa Ray
Date of birth (1984-04-25) 25 April 1984
International career‡
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2003–2009 New Zealand 8 (0)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 23:53, 15 November 2009 (UTC)

Melissa Ray (born 25 April 1984) is an association football player who represented New Zealand at international level.[1]

Ray made her Football Ferns début as a substitute in 9-0 World Cup qualifier win over Cook Islands on 9 April 2003,[2] and finished her international career with eight caps to her credit.[1]

Ray was one of the first New Zealand LGBT+ citizens to marry her then partner, Tash Vitali, after the Marriage (Definition of Marriage) Amendment Bill entered into law.[3][4] The wedding made international news,[5] but the marriage ended a year later.[6]

References

  1. 1 2 "Caps 'n' Goals, New Zealand Women's national representatives". The Ultimate New Zealand Soccer Website. Retrieved 7 July 2009.
  2. ↑ "Football Ferns - Line-ups". The Ultimate New Zealand Soccer Website. Retrieved 7 July 2009.
  3. ↑ "Marriage (Definition of Marriage) Amendment Bill - New Zealand Parliament". parliament.nz. Archived from the original on 10 November 2019. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
  4. ↑ Collins, Simon. (26 July 2013). Sadness mars lesbian couple's big day. New Zealand Herald.
  5. ↑ (19 August 2013). New Zealand gay couples hold first weddings. BBC News.
  6. ↑ Collins, Simon. (16 July 2014). Same-sex marriage pioneers split. New Zealand Herald.
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