Local SA Womens Competition - General Discussion Thread

[The_Wookie]

 

[The_Wookie]

Labor election pledge means Central District could have female changerooms, SANFLW team by 2019

Patrick Keam, Northern Weekly Messenger
March 5, 2018 10:21am

JAMIE Thomas played 152 games for Central District Football Club and his son Paul captained the side during his 269 games with the Bulldogs.

But his proudest moment could be yet to come, as Thomas hopes to see his younger daughters, Aisha and Abbie, represent the club he loves.

The Labor Party last week pledged $500,000 to help fund female changerooms at Elizabeth Oval.

If delivered, it would boost the Bulldogs’ plan to field a senior women’s team next year.

“I’m a big advocate for women’s sport and it’s vital for girls to have a career path,” Thomas, who coached Centrals’ under-14 girls side last season, said.

“Hopefully this means there will be one for girls wanting to play in this area.

“If one of my girls could play in the inaugural women’s side for the club that would be fantastic. Our family is Central District, the club has done a lot for us, and hopefully this means it will continue on to the next generation.”

Thomas said his eldest daughter, Kelly, 37, could have been a fantastic footballer when she was younger but never had a pathway.

“She had all the skills but there was just no opportunities for girls in footy at the time. It’s great to see that won’t be an issue now for Aisha and Abbie.”

The changerooms would cost about $750,000 with Playford Council, which has supported funding bids in the past, likely to contribute money.

Central District chief executive Kris Grant said the announcement was a step towards having a women’s SANFLW team.

“We’ve got to gear ourselves because we’re going to be granted a female team in the competition in 2019,” Mr Grant said.

“This year we will conduct an academy and we’ve got the junior girls footy so, like anywhere, female footy is growing at an exceptional rate in the northern community.

“So we need to make sure as a league club in the area that we need to have all the necessary facilities.”

Elizabeth MP Lee Odenwalder said the funding would allow girls to pursue football careers without barriers.

“The hope is that the facilities at Centrals will mean girls and women in local clubs feel supported, knowing that there are no barriers to them developing their football at a professional level,” Mr Odenwalder said.

He said the funding would be available within the first year of a re-elected Labor government.

http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/messe...9/news-story/9a9781421a5c62511d39bd6e777bfd43

 

[The_Wookie]

Glenelg Football Club dumps first-year women’s coach Aleks Bojanic after four games

Daniela Abbracciavento, CoastCity Weekly Messenger
March 1, 2018 3:27pm

GLENELG Football Club has sacked its women’s coach four games into his first season.

The Tigers parted ways with Aleks Bojanic on Monday – three days after the club slumped to a 0-4 record.

Bojanic was appointed in September to replace Narelle Smith, who was promoted to coach the club’s men’s reserves.

Glenelg’s defeats this season have been by 28, 42, 35 and two points.

Tigers football manager Paul Sandercock said the club made the decision because Bojanic lacked game-day knowledge.

“We loved his passion and commitment to the game,” Sandercock said.

“It was obviously one of his strengths and his ability to try and jell the team.

“But it was probably more just game-day knowledge and ability to sort of get the best out of the team on match days, and I suppose for us it was just his lack of knowledge on game days.

“Really, we weren’t terribly result-orientated.

“I mean everyone wants to win games of footy, but it certainly wasn’t based on that.

“I think it was being able to actually teach them a game style and structure and then having a consistent approach to it on game day.

“I think that’s more where it sat with us.”

Bojanic joined Glenelg in September after four seasons coaching amateur club Blackfriars Old Scholars, where he won a division six premiership in 2014.

He took over a Tigers side that had finished third with a 3-3 record under Smith last year.

Bojanic, who was told of the decision in a meeting before training, said he was disappointed but understood.

“At the end of the day, it didn’t work and for a number of reasons,” Bojanic said.

“Happy to put my hand up as being a part of that but there’s a good deal that has been out of my control.

“Things were, I felt, starting to come together in feeling comfortable.

“Following a discussion with head of football Paul Sandercock, where I felt that I wasn’t coaching to the best of my abilities game day, and that was due in part to the structure that was put in place around me, and also with me adapting to the requirements.

“We were working through that as a collective I felt but the club saw fit to take a new direction, and I respect that decision.”

Glenelg assistant coaches Tammy Scott and Jason Fairall will lead the women’s side for the season’s remaining six games.

http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/sport...s/news-story/ff80b1304893f75340d67b2d8a005c26

 

[Caputo]

So what is different about this year's SANFLW? Will this change SA for NAB U18 Cup and future Crows teams

 

[The_Wookie]

Women’s football is the Sherrin sisterhood storming Adelaide’s suburban footy traditions

https://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/...k=5bfb2bc95d3f906ec281193771d25501-1529498238

ELLA Germein was 18 when she realised netball wasn’t her thing.

“I just never quite felt comfortable in it,” the Adelaide Hills musician says. “I was always too rough and would get warnings, or even sent off – which is very hard to do in netball.

“So when one of my friends from Mt Lofty put up a call-out on Facebook, saying ‘We want to start a women’s football team, who’s interested?’, I said ‘Yep’.”

Germein, as it turns out, wasn’t the only one. In what has become less of a sporting curiosity and more a boom social movement, girl power is shattering South Australian football’s century-old weekend boys club of testosterone and tradition.

Encouraged by the dawn of the AFL Women’s era, females are rushing to suburban and country footy in numbers never before seen – and no longer confined to support roles such as washing jumpers, making sandwiches or running water bottles.

Instead, this Sherrin-chasing sisterhood that includes everyone from wives, mothers and daughters to students, dental hygienists and daycare workers is embracing the chance to bump, kick and tackle their way into what was once a men’s-only domain.

And such is the surge in numbers that league administrators fear a looming shortage of metropolitan grounds to meet the demands of the explosion in interest.

“It’s a bit of a runaway train,” says Andrew Zobel, a first-year women’s coach at Mt Lofty.

“We’re seven weeks into our season and we’re still picking up new recruits every week, people just wandering in saying ‘I wouldn’t mind having a kick’. You wouldn’t see that in men’s footy.”

Clubs are embracing the shift in diversity, with fresh supporter bases and volunteers following the influx of players into community football.

Some clubs in the Adelaide Footy League are reporting bigger crowds for their women’s matches than for lower-grade men’s games, along with a jump in merchandise sales.

Organised women’s football in SA dates back to the launch of a four-club competition in 1991.

But the “big bang” moment came barely 16 months ago with the inaugural AFL Women’s season in 2017 – and it was a sporting phenomenon that was impossible to miss.

Huge crowds turned out across the country as Adelaide’s team, led by Olympic basketballer Erin Phillips, won the first AFLW premiership.

Sceptics belittled the competition as fabricated tokenism that was unsustainable without significant funding and a grassroots program underpinning it.

But in a classic case of building the pyramid from the top, the trickle-down effect has become a torrent as girls and women flock to their local clubs to have a kick.

In 2016, the season before the AFLW wave hit, there were 2741 women’s players registered in SA. Today, just two years on, that number has more than doubled to 6738. In SANFL Juniors, there were 16 girls teams in 2016. This year, there are 98.

Already, clubs – most with long-established men’s programs – are juggling the spike in traffic on suburban grounds for training nights and games.

SANFL predictions suggest that if current trends persist, Adelaide will need at least 70 new ovals by 2026 to meet the growing demand.

“It’s a good problem to have,” said Matt Duldig, SANFL community football manager.

Ella, who is one third of Adelaide’s all-sister touring band Germein Sisters, said the women’s football boom was a long overdue bulldozer that was flattening old-school stereotypes.

“For a long time, it was a case of footy wasn’t for girls and that’s just the way it was,” she said. “But it’s getting so much better with development and exposure to women’s football, and opening doors for so many girls who maybe didn’t know where their place was.

“Some people have this stigma that if you’re a football chick you have to be super tomboy or a bit more masculine.

“But the thing I learnt is everyone of any age or interest is welcome to come out. We’ve got barristers and a 14-year-old schoolkid but whatever your walk of life, we leave it on the sidelines and come together as a team on the field.”

The movement is also blazing fresh pathways for the next generation of elite women’s athletes.

Georgia Swan, 14, is part of the Crows’ development academy, has represented Sturt in SANFL Women’s and is an under-age state player. Her footy journey began with boys’ teams at Bridgewater but, rather than having her career fizzle in her teenage years like others in previous generations, her dream of wearing an AFL club jumper is no longer fantasy.

“I’d love to play for an AFLW team,” she said. “It makes you feel proud to play women’s football. It’s grown so much and I can say I was part of it.”

As well as a logjam for access to grounds, women’s football’s rapid rise in popularity has also led to several challenges at an administration level.

Many football club changerooms are not equipped to accommodate female players – open showers and wall urinals are the norm. And on-field safety has become a major concern, as rookie players lacking a “sixth sense” to protect themselves, increasing the chance of serious injury.

Adelaide Footy League chief executive John Kernahan is pushing for an introductory women’s competition for first and second-year players from next season, which would run under modified rules.

Suggestions include as few as 12 players per team, half-sized fields, no bumping or spoiling in marking contests and no bringing an opponent to the ground in a tackle.

“It may be that we need to provide a platform for girls to learn those fundamental parts of the game before they get into the more traditional game,” Mr Kernahan said. A week ago Strathalbyn was crowned Great Southern Football League’s 2018 women’s premier, after beating McLaren by 17 points.

They formed their first women’s team in the immediate aftermath of the inaugural AFLW season, and this year boasted three sides – in under-14s, under-16s and its Open team.

Club president Brenton Smith said the introduction of women’s football had been a raging success.

“And when you’ve got the girls around the club, well, you’ve got blokes hanging around, too,” he said. “But women’s footy has definitely added another dimension to our footy club.”

 

[BringBackTorps]

Women’s football is the Sherrin sisterhood storming Adelaide’s suburban footy traditions

https://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/...k=5bfb2bc95d3f906ec281193771d25501-1529498238

I think the half-field, 12-a-side, wrap tackles only are excellent ideas for novice female players. They need to learn to protect their heads when trying to pick the ball up from the ground (turning their backside when an opponent fast approaching), learn how to fall properly etc. They should not be thrown into a full contact sport without proper training -and initially one year with modified rules will reduce the chances of serious injury.
I cant understand why there should be a prohibition on spoiling, or using your hips to unbalance your opponent, in a marking contest.

The SANFL prediction of requiring a further 70 new ovals by 2026 to meet the booming female demand (plus new female AF facilities etc.) is further evidence of the inevitable looming conflict with other sports/residents' objections/demands on Councils, State Govt. for finance etc. This is a problem now in parts of Melb. & Sydney.

 

[Heardy_101]

70 new Ovals? Bloody hell.

 

[The_Wookie]

https://www.adelaidenow.com.au/spor...k=5bfb2bc95d3f906ec281193771d25501-1529747752

PORT Adelaide has joined the women’s football movement with plans to field a senior team in the SANFL next year.

The SA Football Commission will meet on Tuesday night to discuss proposed expansion of the women’s competition in its third season as well as considering moving it from summer to winter in 2019.

This year’s SANFLW competition included six clubs and was won by South Adelaide.

Port Adelaide, Central District and Woodville-West Torrens have all lodged applications to be part of the next intake and will know by June 30 whether they are successful.

The Bulldogs were turned down last year, while this is the Eagles’ first application for a team to train and play its games at Ottoway.

Port Adelaide’s bid is not associated with the Port Adelaide Women’s Football Club which is an independent team in the amateur league.

Port has launched an Aboriginal women’s academy and runs junior female development pathways through its ‘next generation’ academies, but is one of the last clubs in the AFL not to have a dedicated women’s team.

 

[Heardy_101]

Surprised it's not associated with the PAWFC... Would make more sense

 

[The_Wookie]

AFTER 160 years of Australian football history, the growth rate of female whistleblowers across South Australian football ovals is outstripping their male peers.
https://www.adelaidenow.com.au/spor...g/news-story/37ee23b327b808791e16d92d6b30ad56

Female umpires in SA have increased threefold in the past three years, and yet more are needed to keep pace with the extraordinary growth of female participation in football.

“We have seen an massive influx of females umpiring as well as playing football — it’s been enormous and one of the biggest changes I’ve seen in my 23 years of umpiring,” SANFL state umpiring manager Steve Harris told The Advertiser.

There were 51 female umpires in 2015 compared to 150 this year across all SA leagues.

Women and girls now represent one in every 16 umpires across SA, compared with one in 30 before the AFLW was introduced in 2017. The largest growth rate has been in the 14 to 19 age group.

The spike in female umpires correlates with a jump in women playing football across SA. In 2016, there were 16 female teams in SANFL Juniors — this year there are 98 girls’ teams from under-8s to under-16s.

 

[The_Wookie]

 

[The_Wookie]

SOUTH Australia needs a second AFLW team to help prevent talented players moving to Victoria to boost their draft chances, some state league coaches say.

At least seven SANFLW players have moved to Melbourne over winter to feature in the women’s Victorian Football League and will remain there as training partners with their club for the summer.

South Adelaide will lose three from its premiership-winning team – young gun Jorja Rowe, ex co-captain Kristi Harvey and Louella McCarthy – to Victoria.

Panthers coach Rick Watts said defender Caitlin Williams would have also stayed in Melbourne if she had not been struck down with an illness.

Watts said because the Crows’ AFLW team was made up of talent from SA and NT under the licence agreement, it limited opportunities for local girls.

He called for Port to bid for an AFLW team to stop the talent drain.

“For us at South, we want to be known for developing these girls,” Watts said.

“But if the AFL could allow Port Adelaide or if they (the Power) threw their hat in the ring, all of this talent would stay here.

“We really need Port Adelaide to get a team to keep our local talent in the state and not have to move to Victoria and other states.”

The addition of Geelong and North Melbourne to the AFLW in 2019 means six out of the 10 clubs will now be from Victoria.

Norwood premiership coach Steve Symonds said defender Nicola Burns, who was part of Carlton’s VFLW team, would stay with the Blues this summer.

“At the moment, the Crows only realistically have three, maybe four, positions on their list,” Symonds said.

“So because there is only one AFLW club in SA, the girls don’t have any choice if they want to get drafted.

“They have to move to Victoria to do that.

“If Port are still a few years away from putting a team in, the Crows are the only ones who can put players on their list, so they are better off going to Victoria to showcase their talents.”

North Adelaide mentor Matt Slade is bracing to lose state under-18 captain Esther Boles, who plans a Victorian move, while SA’s Jess Edwards, who is part of Collingwood’s VFLW team, will remain with the Magpies.

Slade expected to lose at least one more player to the VFLW.

“With Woodville-West Torrens and Central coming into the SANFLW next year, we could lose a couple to those teams,” Slade said.

“Then when you lose a few interstate, with 16 on the field, you’ve lost a quarter of your team and they are hard to replace.”

Port’s football general manager Chris Davies was unavailable for comment.

SANFL football boss Adam Kelly was also unavailable for comment.

 

[BringBackTorps]

Whilst it is pleasing to see SA female AF Regd. nos. rise by c. 50% in 2018, it is from a relatively small base -there are still only 98 girls' teams (ie U8-U18) in total in Adelaide.
SA female AF nos. are very small cf. Vic. & Qld., therefore it is premature to believe Pt Adelaide should join the AFLW very soon.

SA, similar to WA, has been very poor in promoting female competitions until very recently. This reflects badly on the SANFL & WAFC, & their shortsighted, incompetent management.

 

[radiojake]

A little weird considering Adelaide only got their AFLW license on the back of the NT agreement with SA's female footy talent considering not good enough on it's own

 

[jatz14]

Whilst it is pleasing to see SA female AF Regd. nos. rise by c. 50% in 2018, it is from a relatively small base -there are still only 98 girls' teams (ie u8-U18) in total in Adelaide.
SA female AF nos. are very small cf. Vic. & Qld., therefore it is premature to believe Pt Adelaide should join the AFLW very soon.

SA, similar to WA, has been very poor in promoting female competitions until very recently. This reflects badly on the SANFL & WAFC, & their shortsighted, incompetent management.

They are now caught in a catch 22. Those women with a desire to play AFLW feel they have to leave to have a chance.

How then does SA develop enough depth for a second team if half a dozen of the best players leave every year? With their small base, they cannot afford the losses, and it hurts other players by lowering the standard of the local comps.

Sent from my XT1068 using Tapatalk

 

[threenewpadlocks]

I think that speaks to the strength of the VFLW as a competition and the weakness of the SA set up, if these players want to move. I bet those individuals who chose to leave, many of them don't have any realistic chance of playing AFLW (they understand the realities of more U/18 players coming through the system etc.). They simply might want to play better quality, better organised footy.

 

[Caputo]

There is a pathway that is
Auskick
Junior Clubs
SANFL Age Group Squads including Short competitions
AFL (Adelaide Footbal League) (Local comps)
SANFLW run at the same time as AFLW


SANFLW has been expanding 2017 4 Teams, 2018 6 teams, 2019 8 Teams except Adelaide & Port
Year 2 SANFLW younger with 3 extremely mature cross coders

So far it has been mature aged players move interstate McCarthy, Edwards, Gunn

Only junior was Walling.

Expect only about 3 to be drafted. Gore, Rosenwieg and either Baird or Ponter NT

 

[BringBackTorps]

This article states Adelaide will require an additional 171 ovals by 2026, requiring expenditure of at least $220,000,000. Much of this expansion is due to the rise in female Regd. comp. players. Approx. 13,500 female players are expected by 2026.

Some grounds, due to overuse, are considered, possibly, unsafe to play on.
8% of ovals are "not fit for purpose", while 21% do"not meet minimum training standards". I assume the latter refers to lighting, & the no. of players on the ground concurrently for training.(With so many on the ground, match simulations are becoming often impossible).

Female GR umpire nos. are also booming -but very few ovals have exclusive female umpire toilets. Over 80% of current ovals have inadequate toilet facilities for female players. It will cost c. $161,000,000 to rectify the current inadequacy of female player/umpire toilets.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-06-...pinch-on-afl-facilities/9905956?section=sport

 

[Heardy_101]

171 Ovals is a lot, especially in under 10 years.

 

[Dirty Bird]

I heard in discussion yesterday that the new liberal governments state budget was cutting money to redevelop footy ovals for women???

True?

 

[BringBackTorps]

Hey Croweaters, tell us about the big things happening in SA female footy! You had an amazing, record AFLW GF crowd of 53,000+ in 2019. Spruik up female SA footy.
(It was unacceptable that, prior to 2018, the SANFL- which was supposed to be promoting GR AF- had very little interest in female GR AF; & SA female club & school competition nos. were very poor, cf Vic. & Qld.).

I'll start with the SA Official regd. nos.

In 2019 in SA, female:-

. club nos. rose by 24%- to 7594
. Auskick 5y.o. - 8y.o. nos. rose by 15%- to 2418
. Draftees into the AFLW were a record 16

Furthermore, the SANFL, for each of its 8 Zones, has now introduced dedicated Talent Officers, solely to promote female AF etc.

Female Footy Participation Booms in SA - SANFL

sanfl.com.au

 

[Caputo]

Round 6 Statewide Super Women's League Teams - SANFL

sanfl.com.au

Week 2 back from the COVID break and there has been some handy inclusions with AFLW experience. Unfortunately the rich get richer. About 20 plying their trade with a further 5 delisted players. Most of the SA Under 18 will have made or been regular SANFLW players

 

[radiojake]

Chloe Scheer not playing yet?

 

[Caputo]

No only players with AFLW experience at Central Districts are Sarah Allan and Katelyn Rosenzweig

 

[Caputo]

Wrap up of Adelaide Football League - WOMEN’S DIVISION ONE from Adelaide Advertiser
They were once the teams to beat in the women’s top tier but Adelaide University, Morphettville Park and Salisbury all struggled in their opening round matches.

In a rematch of the 2019 grand final, SMOSH West Lakes was able to exact some revenge over reigning premier Adelaide University, beating the Blacks 8.1 (49) to 1.5 (11).

Morphettville Park, which won back-to-back flags in 2016 and 2015, lost to Payneham Norwood Union 2.3 (15) to 6.17 (53) at Kellett Reserve.

The Falcons were promoted to the top tier after winning last season’s division two flag.

Salisbury did claim a win, but in a very low scoring match against Angle Vale away on Saturday.

The Magpies prevailed 0.9 (9) to 0.4 (4).

Due to the COVID-19 shutdown, the SANFLW season has restarted at the same time as the Adelaide Footy league women’s 2020 campaign.

In previous years, the SANFLW would have been nearing the end of its season as the amateur league started.

Now, with the SANFLW playing at the same time, many of the three clubs’ top players are featuring in our state women’s league, leaving Uni, Morphettville Park and Salisbury without much depth.