FOOTBALL

BY BLAKE METCALF-HOLT

 

FOR the third straight year, young girls from across Morwell Central and Morwell Park primary schools have been exposed to football at a ground level free of charge.

The team at Our Place Morwell and AFL Gippsland have combined for another exciting all-girls Auskick program, bringing together around 60 kids for multiple weeks to develop their skills and love for the game.

This year’s program, which has moved across to be hosted at Morwell Central Primary School, was fully funded via a generous $3000 grant from the Morwell Bowling Club.

The donation meant that registration costs for every participant were entirely covered, meaning the kids just had to show up and take part in a fun hour-long session.

As part of their registration, each girl was provided their own football and pump, while spare funds from the grant were used for a family to attend an AFLW match.

For many, this is the first experience of structured football training, but designed by the AFL Victoria game development team in a way that is fun and welcoming.

The Auskick program is also intended to be the first steps for these girls to hopefully take on the game at a local junior club.

Nyssa Veldwyk said that her two children, Romana and Polly, had been crying out for the opportunity for Auskick and that it would be “hard to stop them” from pursuing football further.

“(They) are really, really excited about getting involved in the girls team … and learning everything about it,” she told the Express.

“It makes it very accessible when things (everything) tends to be very expensive these days when it comes to that, so really, really good that everyone has access to it.”

Women’s football, especially at a junior level, continues to grow across the country and the state, but in Gippsland more specifically.

Traralgon District Junior Football League introduced a new under 15s all-girls competition this year, while West Gippsland has featured various exclusively girls competition for a number of years.

In the first year of the Morwell Auskick program running, it became the second-largest of its kind across Victoria with well over 60 girls taking part.

Young girls enjoyed the opportunity to play without the boys, with the program growing due to the strong support of the local families that participate, with parents active in the trainings and watching on.

Our Place Morwell Partnership Manager, Jen Doultree said that the communal feeling within the program is what’s made it a success.

“Being able to participate in activities like this in a supported, familiar environment helps the girls build confidence to explore other sporting opportunities in the wider community, including joining a club,” she said.

“The Our Place partnership is here to help remove barriers to participation and support families every step of the way.”

The all-girls Auskick program is running throughout the course of Term 3.