FOOTBALL
JUNIORS
BY BLAKE METCALF-HOLT
HUNDREDS of junior football players and parents flocked to Gaskin Park, Churchill on Anzac Day eve for the season opener of the Traralgon District Junior Football League.
Five games were on showcase across the two grounds, most notably serving as the official launch of the new Under 15 Girls competition.
It was truly a festival of junior football, as the twilight timeslot heightened the anticipation of the girls-only matches, with families arriving in bunches to create a pulsating atmosphere.
Churchill Junior Football Club President Shaun Hecker has been instrumental in forging a girls football program from the ground up at the club.
“It was big for (TDJFL) to get behind and push the under 15 girls into this league,” he said.
“There was a lot of preparation behind the scenes, but we’ve got there, and it’s really good, really exciting.”
Pleased with how the night played out, the response was indicative of what community football is all about and the desire for more opportunities for all to play the game.
Even Hecker didn’t expect the crowd to be as big as it was, which required all hands on deck through club volunteers and support from the local Lions club.
“A massive turnout to what we thought, so (I’m) pretty proud of the committee and that everyone’s got behind it,” he said.
TDJFL has been a rich league for some time, and with the addition of a few more clubs in the last couple of years, routinely has junior teams across the board with strong numbers.
For example, the likes of Churchill have 29 kids in its U9s side.
In each of the four U15 girls teams, they all have at least 16 players, setting a strong foundation for future seasons as more come through the lower grades.
The purpose of such an exclusive girls-only competition is to allow these players more time to play against those at a similiar age.
In recent years, aspiring junior women footballers would have to jump immediately from U13s/U14s mixed grades up to U18s youth girls in Female Football Gippsland (FFG)- competing against girls some four to five years older than them.
Hawthorn AFLW player Mikayla Williamson acknowledged how special it is for the girls to have their own competition to play in.
Williamson made the trip down to Churchill after her cousins, who were making their debut for the Cougars in the U15 girls, let her know about their first match.
“They let me know that they had their first game and I was really excited to come down and watch just a girls team in general, but my cousins especially,” she told the Express.
“I think I started playing in about U13s, so it’s so exciting just to even see girls that aren’t old enough to come out and even just be kicking on the side of the oval, and looking up to the other girls playing footy.
“It’s really heart-warming.”
The 26-gamer was drafted in 2023, and has featured in two finals series alongside Morwell AFLW player Casey Sherriff.
Police Boys and Combined Saints played in the very first U15 girls match on Gaskin Park’s main oval, with Police Boys getting it done 7.15 (57) to 1.0 (6) under the senior lights.
Maddison Harker was best-on-ground for the winners, followed by Isla Hollands with two goals, Alina Jacobsen, Kourtney Barber-Bernardone, Blayke Weller, and Mahli Harbridge.
Harper Kite booted the sole goal for Combined Saints, while Chloe Renden, Gemma Clark and Wynter Krausz also played well.
Later on, across at the junior oval, and following a traditional Anzac Day pregame service, Churchill got the chocolates over Glengarry, 10.9 (69) to 1.3 (9).
Mikinlee Russell was a standout with a four-goal performance, with Emily Ludlow, Bella Rennie, Skylah Russell (two goals) and Gabriella Bonorchis filling out the rest of the best.
Faith Ablett sent Glengarry’s lone major through, while Paige May, Ava Mellon, Isabella-Rose Williams, Teelah-May Sedgman and Matilda Veneman competed strongly.
Churchill and Yinnar played off in the other three games at Gaskin Park in the U9s, U11s and U13s.
This year, AFL Gippsland has noted a 35 per cent uptick in women’s and girls football across the region, with growth especially being seen in FFG with youth girls and senior women’s expanding in time for this current season.
Going under the Gippsland League banner, FFG has six teams in it’s senior competition, while youth girls is split into two conferences with 14 teams in total.
The senior women’s season started on the Anzac Day weekend on the Sunday, with Moe and Boisdale-Briagalong opening with wins over Nar Nar Goon and Meeniyan Dumbalk United respectively.
Following the success of its last two years running, FFG will hold its now annual gather round on May 24 at Traralgon Recreation Reserve, bringing all clubs together at one venue for a day of celebration.
The youth girls began back on April 12, while local junior leagues started its seasons at the weekend.
