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Originally from Adelaide, I moved to Melbourne in July 2019 to do my PhD at Monash University. I grew up with my brother guiding me to play sports as a kid but stopped during adolescence. Only as an adult did I re-ignite my passion for football and tennis. Two good friends of mine started a football club in 2018 and were passionate to start a women’s team. This love led to my involvement where after much hesitation I recognised the inherent value of community that they were establishing. In 2021 we started recruitment for our first women’s team, however this was interrupted by COVID and several substantial structural barriers. 2022 is the first year we have had a women’s’ team at Dynamo Victoria FC, with the vision to continue growing an inclusive, welcoming, supportive community. Our club wanted to be involved in Change Makers to understand how as a new team/club we can continue the growth of women’s football participation across all levels of our team/club and beyond. We want to ensure that every person in our club is receiving equal treatment, with equitable access, resources and value placed on each individual.
I have been involved in football for over 15 years, from community to state levels. The past 5 years have been spent in the coaching scene at Pakenham United. I came to PUFC in search of a women’s team in my local area. After pre-season training with the men, there was no a team for me to join. Following a spring training program we gathered enough ladies to create a 7-a-side team the following year and from there the club has continued to grow, to now having 1 ladies and 3 junior teams.
I’m passionate about continuing to build teams throughout each age group and for Pakenham to become a dominant female club in the South East. Our aim is player retention, where we can provide a development pathway and support environment where senior players are positive role models for the younger players in our community.
Football has had such an impact in my formative years and throughout my life overall, and I strongly believe team sport can be highly influential and that all young people deserve to have the same opportunity.
In 2018, I took on a new role as Girls’ Program Manager at Glen Eira FC, after realising the Club wasn’t offering its girls anything close to the same opportunities as the boys in the Club. With 2 daughters and 2 sons who played for Glen Eira FC, and were having very different experiences, this wasn’t acceptable to me! Working alongside the inaugural Girls’ Technical Director, John Sugunananthan (a visionary coach and leader in girls and women’s football), we introduced a host of new programs (most of them free), established a leadership team, gathered sponsors, and created an elite pathway for girls in the Club, to match the elite boys’ pathway that had existed for nearly 10 years.
A year later our girls’ participation rate had increased by 40%, our social media was saturated with our new girls’ program, and we were off and away! Despite the enormous progress we have made, we still have a very long way to go in many areas before reaching the target of 50/50 – for example our Club’s Committee is severely lacking in its representation of girls and women.
Whilst I am a lawyer by background, I am passionate about advancing girls and women in football, and I was a lucky participant in FV’s inaugural Female Administrator Leadership Program in 2019. I was also grateful to receive a Change Our Game Scholarship from the Victorian Government, which will allow me to further my study in community sports management and leadership.
I have hopeful leadership aspirations for the future, and would especially like to see Club governance reformed and overhauled, to ensure equality in participation and experience in Clubs. I am thrilled that Australia is co-hosting the Women’s World Cup in 2023. What a time to be an Australian woman involved in the beautiful game! I doubt there will be a better opportunity to advance women and girls in football in Australia, and to reach the target of 50/50 participation. We have much to do on many fronts, but this is our time – oh the places we will go!
Originally from the UK, I moved to Australia in 2007 to travel and work and began my new life on the Mornington Peninsula, Victoria. I studied Early Childhood before starting my own family and completing my Bachelor of Early Childhood Education through Swinburne.
My love for sport began at an early age, following my brother around and trying to do whatever he could. I swam, played tennis, football (soccer) and rugby back in the UK. Through my high school years, I found a passion for football (soccer) and played regular games for my girls’ high school team. Where the playing stopped, I can’t exactly recall, but most likely when I began my travels and felt the societal pressure to pursue other areas that conformed with gender roles and expectations, after experiencing first-hand the barriers and bullying that occurred from being a girl in sport, something of which was uncommon within the male dominated space.
Fast forward 20 years, and I’m back loving football (soccer) in Australia. My family and I moved from the Mornington Peninsula to Port Fairy at the end of 2021 and here I became a member of the inaugural Port Fairy Plovers Women’s Team. We had our first season in 2022 and this is where the seeds were laid for the Change Makers Program and the realisation for the continued growth and inclusiveness needed for women in sport as a whole, not just football (soccer). Our club wanted to be involved in Change Makers to understand how we, as a new club can continue the growth and participation of women in sport and to ensure equitable practices for all including; treatment, access, resources and value.
I’ve been part of the St Albans Saints Soccer Club since birth. I stated playing for the club as an eight-year-old and loved playing football there for ten years. For the last thirteen years I’ve been part of the committee. I have been with the club when they won several state league and NPL titles and when they made it to round 16 in the FFA cup. Since 2016 I’ve been coaching the club’s mali plavi (little blues) mixed team and miniroos boys teams.
Over the last couple of years, I’ve been part of our club’s Major Capital Works Committee. Currently our committee is reviewing our facilities and looking at the best way to design it’s masterplan. The review has already pointed out areas that require major improvement to enable a more inclusive environment.
I joined the Change Makers to help my club become more inclusive and encourage greater women and girls participation. I’ve see our club play at the highest levels in men’s competitions and it would be great to see our girls and women’s teams do the same.
I am a mum of 2 boys aged 8 & 12 and work full time in a Senior HR Leadership role. I have had the opportunity to play for a number of football clubs over the years, each of which hosting a wonderful environment for female footballers. My boys’ involvement in football has given me the opportunity to reconnect with the game and play my part in changing the narrative. I have been and continue to coach boys and girls playing an active role in ensuring the environment provides for a continued love of the game for our children.
I am also a member of the Preston Lions Football Club advisory board playing an active role in growing participation in the game but more importantly increasing female participation at all ages. Being involved in the Change Makers Project will provide me with a greater network to collectively problem solve an issue that I am deeply passionate about.
An experienced and knowledgeable coach with over 30 years experience as a coach. My formative coaching years were spent within the British military building my knowledge on the back of a playing career within the military and with clubs in UK, Germany and Norway.
Arriving in NZ from the UK in 2004, I established a reputation for being a forward thinking and innovative coach and have mentored many young players from playing junior football to playing senior football and beyond. I arrived in Brisbane Australia in Jan 2012 working with all levels at Redlands United, and U14/U15 boys at Brisbane City before accepting the role of Director of Coaching at Capalaba Bulldogs. I was head hunted for a short stint in Samoa with the National teams, in preparation for the WC cycle, before moving back to NZ to take the reins of a National Women’s League team in Dunedin and leading them to their best ever position. I also took King’s High School 1st XI to 15th place of 32 in the NZSS Competition, their best position since 1982.
On my return to Australia in 2019, I assisted Yarrajets FC in restructuring its coaching set up before moving to FCBulleen to assist with the NPL U20s and coach the NPL U14 teams. I took the TD role at Kingston in September which I left in February 2020.
Season 2021 will see me coaching FCBulleen U19 WNPL and assisting with the Women’s first team.
My goal has always been to improve the standard of the player by encouraging the player to be positive in their approach to the game in a fun environment.
I am a FFA B Licence holder, just completed NZF A Licence (final assessment to go), Australian Strength and Conditioning Association (ASCA) Level 1 Coach, and have a current Working With Children Check.
Growing up with two older brothers and a father who lived and breathed football, it was only natural that I follow in their footsteps. From watching Liverpool and Man United to the rough and tough backyard games with my brothers, I knew that I wanted to play football just like they did for my school and a club.
Unfortunately at my high school, women’s football had yet to be organized but I found an opportunity to set up my schools team with other like minded women who wanted something more than just the expected women’s sports of Netball and tennis. This led to the creation of the school’s women’s football team which I was fortunate to play in until I finished year 12 and I am proud to say continues to this day. That was 14 years ago, and it is amazing that I am still playing today with Watsonia Heights FC who have given me the opportunity to be a part of this fantastic program. I have always strived to be a leader on field as the reliable defender who always put the team first before personal accolades and a leader off field helping with the game days and club events. Watsonia Heights FC is a leader in our community for junior development of girl’s football and they are creating a pathway to senior women’s football with their current program. I am optimistic that with this program we can continue to be a leader of the football community and achieve the goal of creating a 50/50 participation in our club.
Albury-Wodonga born and bred I have been connected with sport in the region since our two youngest boys became involved, firstly with North Albury Auskick before moving across to Football (Soccer) in about 2006. I have always volunteered at clubs in some capacity before joining the Albury/Wodonga Football Association executive in 2020 for 2 years. Following my boys to Murray United in 2021 and taking on the Secretary role in 2021 and 2022.
I have a corporate background and so try to bring my organisational experience across to the volunteer office. At Murray United we are keen to progress to an NPL Girls licence in the near future to give the elite girls the same pathway afforded to the NPL Boys locally. We hope to advocate to Football Victoria to remove some of the obstacles associated with being a regional club in this space as we feel the opportunity should be there for all Victorian’s, not just the metro ones!
I am a (nearly 50) father of 3 who has lived and breathed football since I was a young boy back in the UK, when jumpers for goalposts was the only way we played. I moved to Australia with my Mum and younger sister when I was 13. I always played and my mum took me everywhere, my sister never played any sport. My first appreciation of female soccer was when as a 15 year old we played an U19 Victorian girls side. They smashed us! When I met my wife she needed a social activity so I took her to a local soccer club, she loved it and so did I. We had 3 kids over 6 years and she played every season in between. Some of my fondest memories are watching her ladies football while sharing stories and nappies with a couple of other dads whose wives were playing while we cared for our babies and kids. As the kids grew up watching Mum and Dad playing soccer it was inevitable they would fall in love with our sport and want to play. With 5 of us playing our weekends are full, our weeknights are full. I see so many Mens, Ladies, Boys and Girls games I see so many similarities and so many differences. I now coach 2 junior teams 1 boys and 1 girls. I am the Secretary of our club and we are working towards being a totally inclusive club. Our female representation has declined over the pandemic years so we need to focus our energies on rebuilding this part of our club.
I was raised in country Victoria and had a love for AFL.
It wasn’t until I married a soccer-mad Englishman, and my son started futsal when he was 5 years old that I started to develop a love for the round ball game.
I love being involved in my son and daughters participation, and even gave playing a go for myself over the past two years.
I am passionate about having opportunities for both boys and girls to participate, prosper and love the game.
I would love to see progression of the game in my hometown of Ballarat and surrounds, and for my daughter to have the same opportunity as my son in the future.
I’m currently the General Manager at Caroline Springs George Cross FC. My involvement at George Cross stems back 30 years when my two brothers played and both my parents volunteered at the club. I have two children, a 17 year old son who plays and coaches and a 5 year old daughter who is just starting to enjoy playing the sport in a fun and interactive way via our preschool clinics.
My career background is in Project Management spanning 20 years in the finance industry and football was always a great passion of mine with many hours spent watching and volunteering at Georgies. However, a unique opportunity came when I was offered full time employment as the club’s GM. The club was growing and moving into a new state of the art facility with a fully operational restaurant and stakeholders to manage. The role has allowed me to build and deploy stability and focus within our club and maintain solid relationships within the industry.
Our club’s focus to support women in our game is strong and my role provides a unique opportunity to now drive a solid focus on our female program.
If you were born in Glasgow, Scotland it is more than likely you were also born into football (soccer). It’s one of many cities which are known as a “football city”. Ever since I can remember I’ve had a ball at my feet and despite unsuccessful spells as a junior at Glasgow Rangers and Hamilton, I still play today with the older boys in the Masters competition. Play as long as you can!
After helping to coach a Senior Men’s team in the UK, on arriving in Melbourne in 2012, I found myself coaching my sons’ teams, which I continued to do until 2019 with Glen Waverley Soccer Club and Eastern Lions. I’d long admired the women’s game and this peaked in 2019 when watching the Women’s World Cup held in France where Scotland had qualified for the first time. The quality of football, the commitment and the unity amongst the teams was hugely impressive and since then I’ve continued to watch as many games as possible.
I took up the position of Senior Women’s Coach at Mentone Soccer Club in November 2019. When people learn I coach a senior women’s team, the most commonly asked question is “why are you coaching women?” My typical answer is (1) I love coaching the team and (2) I see the team as simply a group of players, who need to learn and develop like any other team. Despite there being no season in 2020, I continue to be fully committed to women’s football and I’m delighted to participate in the Change Makers program and working towards Football Victoria’s objective of achieving 50/50 participation by 2027. In the future, I hope we have many more girls dreaming of being the next Lisa De Vanna or Sam Kerr in Australia and in Scotland dreaming of being the next Kim Little or Caroline Weir!
I’m a father of two with an 11 yo daughter who loves her football. It’s a beautiful game that accommodates all shapes and sizes, but has a way to go to create a better gender balance. I love that my daughter loves the game, and I want to help provide opportunities for her and her peers to create life-lasting friendships, learn the value and power of teamwork, and stay physically active for longer.
On weekdays I’m a business consultant. After hours and on weekends, I’m passionately volunteering in club committee and team management roles. I like to utilise my business/commercial skills to take a strategic and proactive approach to community sports management. I take pride in helping to create a culture of fun, inclusiveness and belonging, where everybody has a voice, and no one is more important than another. I measure success in smiles.
I’m excited for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup and believe now is a spectacular time to create real change and make women’s & girl’s football a beacon of fun, friendship, physical fitness and personal development.
I am a busy mum of three girls who have always been involved in sport in one way or another.
All my girls have played different sports from Gymnastics, tennis, netball and soccer and I have loved watching them continue to grow in their individual sport, just as I did as a child when I also played soccer through my teenage years.
I have been a team manager for tennis and soccer over the last 8 years for quite a few clubs and recently have been involved as team manager for U17’s/18’s at Nunawading city Football club, while also mentoring the young ladies’ and giving them courage to play sport.
I think it is important that we educate and change people’s views with respect to girls/women in sport and I believe supporting them in sport is essential in keeping them interacted and wanting to play.
I am glad I have involved myself with the change makers Course as I can get a better understanding on how to drive girls/women sport further and believe that this course will educate and give me the skills to empower girls/women sport in our club for the future.
I have always enjoyed playing sports and would always play them at school. From 2016 to just before the pandemic I raced BMX with the many different types of people from people my own age to people in their 60’s on both the new and vintage bikes. I have been in the world of soccer for a few years with helping the Miniroos program as a first job to this year actually playing on a state 4 woman’s league. I have loved helping and improving the places around them from being apart of student leadership council in high school and now being apart of a youth action committee in the Cardinia shire.
My history at Pakenham United is very short with me joining a few month ago but I coach one of their under 11’s team and volunteer in the canteen. At my previous club Officer city I ran the Miniroos for 5 years and help run the go mums program and the go girls which lead to their first all girls team, I also was apart of the formation of their first metro men’s team.
My reasoning for joining is that I want to see more females in the world of sport and I want the opportunity to be able to make that happen.
Born and raised in the UK, football has been a big part of my life ever since 8-year-old me first witnessed Paul ‘Gazza’ Gascoigne weaving his magic for Spurs and England back in the early 1990s. An enthusiastic (though admittedly limited) player, I’ve played at an amateur level in Germany, Singapore and most recently Australia, where I played in the Victorian State and Metropolitan Leagues for Kings Domain.
The last three years have seen me move into coaching, first at Kings Domain and more recently at Port Melbourne SC, whom I joined as Head of Women’s Football and Senior Coach in 2018 with the mission to relaunch their female football programme. We currently have 40 players across two senior teams, and plan to add juniors in the coming years as we strive to become a club of choice for women and girls.
Away from football, I work as a Delivery Lead for global software consultancy ThoughtWorks, where building diverse, high performance teams is my vocation. In an industry that is overwhelmingly male dominated, ThoughtWorks, after much hard work and a lot of determination, has achieved 50% female and minority gender representation in its Australian workforce. This gives me hope and belief that we as a football community can do the same, making FV’s 2027 goal a reality.
I am hopeful that the Change Makers Program will arm me with tools to enable me – and more importantly my club – to drive real positive change, while also providing an opportunity to learn and challenge my own beliefs and opinions.
I am currently the president of Melton Phoenix FC, a community club in my home town, where my grandfather, father and mother all played.
As a young girl, quite a while ago now, I was in the under 11 boys team at Melton and had to sit outside the change room and listen to the team talk through the door, just because I was a girl. I was asked why I didn’t do dancing or netball, but I knew football was in my DNA.
When I said one day I will play seniors, I was laughed at… this ridicule just fueled my fire pushing me to represent Victoria from age 12 to 18 and being a member of the first female NTC program in Victoria. It was also my inspiration behind becoming only the second female president of our 52 year old club.
I am more determined than ever to ensure that all young girls, such as my three nieces who play, have a great football experience and have ALL of the opportunities that MALES have. Last year myself and my committee implemented our first specific female football pathway, albeit very basic, for young girls to realise their potential as players, referees, coaches and committee/board members. The program included me coaching a “Girls Only Kinder Soccer Program”, which is the highlight of my week every Saturday morning. To be a role model, empower these little ladies and see the positive impact the game of Football has on them and their lives is such a privilege.
Together we can all make an ever-lasting change of gender equity in Football by 2027.
I have been involved in competitive sport my whole life, predominately basketball and netball. My involvement in soccer came much later in life as a result of a Northern Irish husband and 4 children who all began playing as 5-year olds. In the last 10 years I have become a soccer player, coach, soccer mum, secretary and am now currently president of the Phillip Island soccer club, as well as a chiropractor and an early childhood teacher. Life pre-covid revolved around soccer, plus the other sports our children played. On a typical weekend we would drive 100s of kms to play or watch the kids. This would have been our third season with a daughter playing WNPL and the first for our son playing NPL. Covid has resulted in less kms in the car for us in 2020!
I have always been passionate about girls playing sport and ensuring they have as many opportunities as boys. The lack of coaches can be a problem in all sports, and I have put my hand up to ensure that my girls and their friends can experience female coaches as well as males.
As a club we are committed to increasing female participation and are in the unusual position of having all the executive roles this year held by females. We are constantly working towards gender equality in the club, even against the inevitable push back that can occur. Last year our club held an Orange round to focus on gender equality and the prevention of violence against women, it was strongly supported by club members and the community.
I decided to join this project so I can learn more about how we can engage young girls and women in sport and keep them there. To make sustainable changes in female participation in our football community.
Hi, my name is Angela but many know me as Carrot and I am currently the vice-president of Melbourne University Soccer Club (MUSC). I also make up one quarter of ESPN podcast The Far Post, write for online publication Beyond 90, and am about to start a research degree on content creators in women’s football media.
Born in Serbia and migrating to Australia as a child, football was part of my upbringing as it was the sport that brought migrants together in Australia. Sadly I lost touch with the sport whilst developing my professional career which has expanded for over 25 years as financial controller of a business in the manufacturing industry.
My children’s involvement in sport has reintroduced me to football from a different perspective. Seeing the need for growth I took the opportunity to be involved in the development of a new club within South Eastern Suburbs of Melbourne, I wear many hats within this newly formed Club including Treasurer, Secretary and Assistant Coach.
It was through an amazing opportunity with Football Victoria that I became part of the inaugural Female Leadership Program in 2019 where I found my passion for wanting to grow female participation in Football.
2020 has given me further opportunity to be part of Football Victoria’s newly formed Go Girls! Steering Committee which will promote the sport to young girls within our community. Currently in development stage is a Cardinia Women’s Sports Network to help guide other women to increase female participation in sport within the shire.
Being involved with the Change Makers Program will give me a platform to help further my cause of building not just the sport of Football into my community but more importantly introducing young females to the sport. Many of whom have come from a cultural background where women are not generally introduced to sports.
I have been involved in the football world for over 40 Years. I hold a FFA B licence and have played NSL youth level, state league, Premier League and represented Victoria as State Level.
My passion for football has extended further not only from my extensive experience which includes working with clubs like Doncaster Rovers, Box hill, and Manningham blues FC, furthermore I believe enough has not been done to support our girls/women therefore bringing through the introduction of the FFF (Female Football Fanatics),which was another passion of mine, with the aim of the program being to supplement club training with a focus on developing advanced technical skills, and a push to drive female football further.
In 2020 I was appointed the head of the girl’s program at Nunawading City football club and would love to see the club grow further in supporting girls/ women of all ages in playing football. I want to show my own daughters that any female can play at a high level just like the boys/men can, and with the support of the club, our diverse community and the change makers program I know that the changes will come.
Now is the time to commit to this change, with the support of our current programs ,mentors and coaches and the change makers course our aim is to promote and enrich women’s sport at our wonderful club Nunawading Football club.
I am the Deputy Chair of the Geelong Women’s Task Force having being part of the group since its incept in 2016, where club representatives come together to consult and collaborate, raise the profile and create opportunities in football, for women and girls in the Geelong region. I am a member of the Geelong Region Soccer Committee, female football director, and part of the technical development team at Bell Park SC. I have a passion to make change, advocate for gender equality and encourage female participation in all facets of community football.
Growing up in a football loving family yet being advised at a young age “girls don’t play soccer”, inspired me to be involved in any way that I could, albeit from the sidelines until I was able to play! In addition to my role with GWTF and Bell Park SC, I have supported coaches in team manager roles; delivered VicHealth Soccer Mums program; Country Champs U12 Girls Coach (2018 & 2019); Assistant Coach Girls TIDC Program Geelong; currently a member of FootballVictoria Steering Committee for a new pilot program “GoGirls” and play community “social” football for Bellarine Sharks Division 2 team. My most rewarding role is coaching U12 Girls Country Champs team, encouraging girls to aim high, overcome obstacles and have fun playing the sport they love. I believe football and sport enriches our lives and brings people, communities, and families together. We can all play a part to empower inclusion, aspire and contribute to lasting change and equality.
Hi there, I’m Emma, a 32-year-old soccer player, captain, and Women’s Ambassador at Mill Park. I’ve been playing soccer since I was five years old, and it’s been a part of my life ever since. Soccer has taught me so much about teamwork, leadership, and perseverance, and I’m grateful for all the lessons it’s taught me over the years.
Growing up in Adelaide, I played soccer with my friends and teammates, and it was always a highlight of my week. I loved the thrill of the game, the feeling of pushing myself to be better, and the sense of camaraderie that came with being part of a team. When I moved to Melbourne a few years ago, I knew that I wanted to continue playing soccer, and I was thrilled to find a team at Mill Park.
As captain and Women’s Ambassador at Mill Park, I contribute to helping to lead the team and create a positive and inclusive environment for everyone who plays with us. I’m passionate about making soccer a welcoming and accessible sport for all, regardless of age, gender, or background. I believe that everyone should have the opportunity to play sports and enjoy the benefits that come with it, from physical fitness to mental health and social connection.
When I’m not on the soccer field, I work as a product manager in app and software development, where I bring my passion for positive change to my work. I love finding ways to make products more sustainable, efficient, and beneficial for our customers and the environment. As a leader, I equally love being able to build an environment where my team can feel safe, enjoy themselves and do their best work.
I’m passionate about driving positive change in all aspects of my life, and I believe that we all have a role to play in creating a better world. That’s why I joined the Change Makers Program, to find ways to help drive that change at Mill Park and beyond. I’m excited to learn from and collaborate with other like-minded individuals and organisations, and to work together to make a positive impact in our community.
Overall, I feel incredibly fortunate to have found my passion for soccer and to be part of a team that shares my values and goals. I’m excited to continue playing, leading, and advocating for positive change, both on and off the field
I have always been a passionate player of sport and as a girl of the 80’s and 90’s we were encouraged to multi sport, give everything a go, as long as it was netball, hockey, ballet or athletics! Starting high school in 1990 there were no girls soccer teams, so I started one. We were given the boys old rugby uniforms, we had to find our own coach and trial our own players for the team, but we did it and created what went on to be a very successful and competitive team for years to come. We helped create positive change.
Back then, I never really thought much about the fact that there were less opportunities for girls to play certain sports, or few female role models for young people to look up to. It was just how it was. Well, no more!! Having raised a son who is a passionate soccer player and still playing at 21 and has followed in my footsteps volunteering to coach and assist at our home club in NZ, I feel as though I have successfully passed the passion for the game and the community on to him.
It is well and truly time for equity in sport and I feel that the Changemaker Project is a wonderful catalyst for understanding, creating and sustaining clubs and communities to make this a reality. The conversations are started, the fuel ignited and the people ready! Let’s do this!!
I am a mother of three girls and live in the Grampians. We were one of the original families to join the early beginnings of the Stawell Pioneers in 2018. All of my daughters played soccer and I started participating in Mums soccer. I loved it so much that I signed up for the women’s team. The women’s team consisted of girls and women aged 11 – 42. We had a great season with loads of laughs and comradery. Over the years my eldest daughter left soccer due to no team existing for her age group. Unfortunately out here in the country the only other options for sport (unless you want to travel) are AFL or netball. My other daughter left to play netball (it’s seen to be cool), but I still have a very keen thirteen year old soccer player. She plays for the Stawell pioneers and for the Southwest Victoria Representative team.
Admittedly I never competed in soccer at a young age and knew very little about the sport. I was brought up on the mornington peninsula and we had a heap of sporting options. I was mostly a swimmer, athletics and I also played womens AFL in the very early days in the interschool sport competitions. Since my kids have learnt the game I have also grown in my understanding of entire communities connected via the sport. I have a growing love for soccer and an appreciation for the skill involved. I am now an avid follower of the Matildas and would never have thought I would have enjoyed watching the World Cup.
I joined the Change Makers program because I am proud to be able to offer soccer as a sport option in such a regional area and have invested time in strengthening and growing the club. I believe in increasing equity in sport to provide everyone with the opportunities they need to succeed.
After moving to Ballarat when I was 4, with British parents it was a bit of a no brainer that we were always destined to play football no matter whether we enjoyed it or not. Since the age of 5 I have played across various age groups, clubs and competitions in Ballarat Local & State Divisions and I have seen how female football can succeed when run efficiently.
I grew up on the sidelines watching my dad play for Box Hill Soccer Club and my uncle played for Hibbs, Newcastle and Scotland so you could say it’s in the blood. I played for a while then I found Basketball but now back involved soccer. I also love my craft as I am a milliner by trade and love working leather making flowers and jewellery. So have wear many hats and love learning new things.
My youngest daughter became involved and took to the soccer ball and she loves it. Therefore, getting me involved in soccer again. I love watching kids develop and smile on the pitch.
In May 2019 I had a major health scare and couple months later I saw advertising for Go Soccer Mums at Mt Martha delivered by Mel Maizels, so I joined. It was what I needed to get me physically back into the game and help with rehab. Along the way I started to realise that Female Football required support for growth and development especially here on the Peninsula.
Recently I joined the committee so that we can help develop Women’s and Girls soccer on the Peninsula and with the support of Football Victoria I believe that with social interaction, inclusivity, promoting participation and player development for fun for local girls and women whatever their age or ability.
I’m the senior ladies’ coach, player, current club treasurer, past president, of Wodonga Diamonds FC, based in regional Victoria. I have been a member of this club for the last 9 years, with both my daughter, my wife and myself active participants.
Taking on the role in 2019 as women’s coordinator, I am passionate about engaging more females of all ages and abilities to get involved in football.
As a coach, mentor and player, I am always looking for ways to improve myself. Earlier this year I completed my Coaching C-Licence and plain to use this knowledge to further female participation in the sport via an all-inclusive summer program.
Having always had a passion for team sport I grew up playing Soccer, Australian Rules and Rugby league. I strongly believe that team sports help to build confidence, friendships and has some very significant health benefits, this being particularly true for females.
I have played football all my life, and been involved in coaching for over ten years now.
I helped to launch the Junior program at Collingwood City eight years ago, as well as introducing our female program six years ago, which I am proud to say has grown to over 100 players. I am currently a Technical Director at the club, as well as coach of our Senior Women’s side.
I am extremely passionate about developing players through fun and engaging sessions, to help players reach their full potential, whilst keeping as many players in the game as possible.
Since the inception of our Club’s female program, I have been significantly invested in growing this as much as possible, and drawing as many girls and women into playing football as we can.
I believe it is imperative that we begin to change attitudes towards women’s football and implement change to develop a sustainable model that caters for girls of all abilities, helping to both draw more females into the sport, as well as keeping them playing.
I love women & girls football – when I think back to my childhood when I wasn’t allowed to play sport outside of school, I feel such regret at the missed opportunities. So now I am driven to create opportunities for girls and women to play football in ways that work for them & to grow the capacity of women in our community to lead within our club. I’ve studied Sport & Recreation Administration through a Change our Game Scholarship which enhanced my understanding of governance, programming & leadership in a club setting.
I immersed myself in playing football just before I became a mother & missed it terribly when I stopped playing due to injury & being a busy mum working outside of the home. I reconnected again through mixed futsal & becoming a Soccer Mums Deliverer at my son’s club Brunswick City SC & working for Melbourne City FC to support clubs to develop the Soccer Mums program. Working with the clubs gave me insight into the willingness many clubs have to offer more social programs for women & girls but who struggle to turn those intentions into action. So I want to be a part of the change, starting with my own club Brunswick City SC.
Originally from Tasmania, I moved to Victoria to study when I was 18. Sport has always been a big part of my life. I was a gymnast, did athletics and played netball all through my childhood and adolescent years.
As an adult, I have played social and competitive women’s netball and enjoyed running. It was only in 2021 that I got my first opportunity to play soccer! I had never kicked a soccer ball before in my life.
My husband joined the Port Fairy Soccer Club senior men’s team in their inaugural year in 2021. The positive culture and inclusivity I felt from the leadership and players at Port Fairy was a breath of fresh air compared with my experience in other male dominated sports and spaces. It inspired me to give soccer a go!
I joined the club to play in the first season of their women’s team in 2022! I completed pre-season and played 1 game, before hanging up my shinnies and boots for the year when I fell pregnant.
I stayed heavily involved in the team providing coordination and coaching support across the 2022 season. I am very proud to say that our brilliant team were runners up in the grand final in their first ever season! Despite our playing success, the barriers we faced as individual players, and as a team were substantial and disappointing.
Our club has a vision to continue to see our women’s and girl’s programs go from strength to strength in a safe and supportive community and in the wider Southwest Victorian region. We joined Changemakers because we can’t do this alone!
There are so many amazing girls and women playing and wanting to play soccer, and I can’t wait to experience a future where they have just as much opportunity to do this as boys and men!
Growing up in Victoria there was only one sport – AFL and it was a game I knew inside out and upside down from a spectator perspective. It wasn’t until my daughter, 8 came home and said she wanted to play soccer. So, she started with about 5 weeks of Futsal and then months of covid. A new local club was having try outs and she insisted she attend – I was surprised to how many girls turned up. After a year of on and off training between bouts of covid lock downs I decided I should attend and AGM to make sure the Club was going to be around the following year. With strict instructions not to put my hand up I returned home as a Club Secretary; on the promise it was not a lot of work!
2021 saw three teams on the pitch, 5 kids picked up in PAC and one is SAP and numerous trips to AAMI park – this was a full-time job! I quickly learnt the girls think and learn very differently to boys and most girls hadn’t been near a soccer ball until now. It was a very sharp learning curve and thinking of ways that “pressed the girls’ buttons” was a weekly event. Then I started to notice that things were done or happened differently with the boys and the girls started to notice and I could understand why this was happening.
I came to the realisation that game was one of the few in the world that both men and women could play and there was no real difference between them once the skills and knowledge had developed but despite this bring women into football was done as an add on – we have everything set up so we will just duplicate which on the whole is possible but the devil is in the detail.
After a year as Club Secretary and girls Team Manager at the Macedon Rangers Soccer Club, I was definitely burnt out. Olivia was loving football more and more. In 2022 I have continued to be involved but only as the Team Manager for the girls’ team.
My background is finance and I have a Bachelor of Business, I am self employed and was the Chairman of an Industry Body with 16,000 members.
I am the club secretary and registrar for Geelong Rangers Soccer Club, based in the northern suburbs of Geelong. I have been a member at the club for the last 6 years, with both of my son’s playing at Myers Reserve. Over the last 2 years the club has grown its female participation, with teams competing in most age groups and I have a drive and passion to continue this in coming years.
I am an inaugural member of the Football Victoria Female Administration program and have more recently taken on the role of Tournament Director for the Country League Football Association Victorian Country Championships in June 2021. This will see over 1200 players and their families descend on the Geelong region for a fantastic festival of football weekend. I am a member of the Geelong Region Football Committee, Assistant coach at club and representative level and now a ‘Change Maker’ for female football through this program.
Growing up in the UK, I competed at State level in swimming but since having children our passion switched to football, with my 2 boys playing from a very early age. We are all Manchester United fans and have watched them live many times, even travelling to Perth last year when they visited. We moved to Australia 6 years ago and have been involved at Geelong Rangers every since, starting as a new expat watching on the sidelines to committee member. I have always had a passion for volunteering and helping others and challenging others ways of thinking. I have a pet hate for the phrase “that’s the way it’s always been” I believe football and community sport brings together people of all ages and abilities. It builds confidence, friendships and health benefits and we all have a part to play in shaping the future of equity in sport.
I have never played soccer (football). It wasn’t a sport option at the school I attended in a small country town in NSW. I did play netball, softball, basketball and hockey. I loved team sports and being outdoors. If soccer was an option, I’m sure I would have played it also. Today, my choice of “sport” is cycling, a good non-contact activity for those with older bones.
I have come into the world of soccer via my daughter who started playing during her Year 7. She had pestered me occasionally through Year 5 & 6 to play but I resisted. I didn’t really have an objection to her playing, I just didn’t know much about the culture of the sport for girls and women at that time. I’m so glad my daughter’s interest for playing didn’t wane when she moved to high school. She had made some good friends and had some fantastic fun through the years at Darebin Falcons Women’s Sports Club. She is now a Senior player. I enjoyed seeing her, and her team, over 5 years (would have been 6 if pandemic didn’t happen), progress in their foot skills, determination, confidence and strength. All of their characters were being modelled by the team spirit through the wins and losses. Resilience was being built, a very valuable asset in today’s world of constant change.
I’m current a member of the Junior Soccer Committee and Team Manager of one of the senior soccer teams at Darebin Falcons. While the Club is firmly focussed on women, it’s a women’s sports club, there is an opportunity to build a stronger bridge from the junior level to seniors. Interest in continuing to play starts to drop away in the U16 age group. Retaining more 15 & 16 year olds is one key to achieving the longer term goal of 50/50 gender participation in soccer. Over the next 3 years, in the lead up to the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup to be hosted by Australia and in New Zealand, we are presented with an ideal time to super-charge participation of women in soccer. It will be amazing!
I am 56 years old and have been part of Epsom FC since my oldest son started playing in 1998 pregnant with my second son. Since then I have travelled from the opposite end of town (Bendigo) for soccer each season. Due to the distance I did not just drop the boys off but stayed and helped. This has ranged from just fetching the wayward balls to cleaning up around the pitches.
Then I joined the committee as an assistant to our junior co-ordinator. Since then I have been Junior Co-ordinator, club photographer, Treasure, Senior Property person, Senior Co-ordinator, Epsom representative on the League (Bendigo Amateur Soccer League-BASL), League minute taker, Manager of teams from Under 6 all the way to senior Women and Men’s teams. Also assist with canteen, catering and any social functions we have to help with fund raising for the club.
I coached my son’s Under 10 team years ago and managed 1 or both the boys teams along the way. Now both grown up and with employment commitments neither of them play but then at the age of 54 I took up playing the sport (never played before) to help our women’s team who was struggling for numbers and played for the last 2 seasons while being Vice President & manager (of all senior teams) (have even managed a couple of goals 🙂). There have been a number of other mothers of all ages and abilities who found out that I was playing and this encouraged a number of them to give it a go and or return to the sport they played when younger.
Having played now has given me a totally different view of the sport from the previous 20+ years on the sideline looking through a camera. The sport for females has come along way in our league and we have been steadily growing all girls teams for all ages for the last 6-7 years.
I am hoping to find out what other areas are doing to help with this change and to work out ways to continue the growth of girls in the sport and how to encourage them to stay during teenage years and to return after having their own children.
My photo is of my youngest son and myself-his last year of soccer and my 1st year of soccer.
I am a librarian at a primary school where I am passionate about empowering students to solve their problems, work collaboratively and experience the world through literature. I want all of our students to develop healthy and life-long reading habits, skills that are so important for wellbeing and their further studies.
As a mum to three children I want them to develop a similar love for sport – one that will build their overall health and wellbeing throughout their life. They all love football, so I want to help them enjoy it for life at our current community club we’ve enjoyed being members of for many years, Doncaster Rovers.
When I heard about the change makers project and the target from Football Victoria for 50/50 female participation by 2027, I might have murmured, that’s not very realistic, I know how few opportunities there are currently. The more I thought about it however, I started to consider the courage it must have taken to put this line in the sand, because there is no good reason that 50/50 participation rates are not already in place. I am excited to be part of a solution for girls and women across Football Victoria and hope the activities we explore at our club have both broad application, and local success.
I’m born in the Netherlands and have grown up with a soccer culture. From a young age I played soccer with the boys and actually always enjoyed the challenge of playing against players that were faster and taller.
After completing a bachelor’s degree and traveling around the world for a little bit I ended up living in Sale, Victoria. While settling down in Sale I was traveling to Melbourne a few times a week to play soccer in the NPL for Box Hill and Southern United. I was doing this for a few years until I had enough of traveling to Melbourne while having a full time job. I then decided to coach at Gippsland FC to provide girls from the Gippsland area a better opportunity to play on a higher level without too much travel.
In 2019 I ended up coaching both a Gippsland FC and Sale United (u16 Boys) and I ended up winning Female Coach of the Year award in 2019 of Football Victoria. In 2020 I started coaching the U14 & U16 Girls teams at Gippsland FC. Unfortunately, due to COVID that season finished pretty early.
In 2021 when we tried to get back into the normal world I coached the u16 Boys at Sale United again and ended up being care-taker coach for the Senior Men’s at Sale United for the last part of the season.
Following in 2022 taking on the role of Senior Men’s coach at Sale United FC for the full season, becoming the first female Senior Mens coach in the Latrobe Valley Soccer League.
My passion for female football really kicked into gear when my twin 8-year-old daughters exchanged their ballet shoes for soccer boots back in 2015. For 4 years they enjoyed playing at Yarra Jets FC and formed fantastic friendships with their female teammates. Being a community club, they highly relied on volunteers to help run the teams, so I took on the role of Team Manager. As the years passed, my daughters showed a great passion for the game and wanted to join like-minded girls, so we made the move to NPLW club FC Bulleen Lions in 2019. I am currently the Operations Manager for all the NPLW junior teams, miniroos teams and for our sister community club teams at Templestowe United FC.
My objective in getting involved was to ensure that all of our girls teams, regardless of age or skill, could get the best football experience if they choose to play with us. That they would get to enjoy football, develop new relationships and perhaps continue to play into adulthood (and then hopefully use their experience to become coaches). Overall, it would be great to have a football world where the opportunities and pathways for female players are as well funded, numerous and respected as their male counterparts.
I started my journey in football playing juniors at South Springvale and continued to pursue my passion when my family moved homes and found new clubs to play at. I continued to play in various state leagues, at an NPL level and achieved Premier League status in Queensland. I currently play at Moreland United FC at a State League 2 level, and I currently hold the position of Club President after being at the club for 4 years. 2022 was my first year in the role and I want to give back to the club and offer my experiences, fresh eyes and perspective to a space that has supported me through my playing years and embracing me onto their committee.
Moreland United showcases diversity and with a new committee wants to move forward with council partnerships and fostering community spirit to offer ongoing opportunities across all aspects of coaching, refereeing, playing, and participating at a volunteer level. Currently, Moreland United want to focus on further developing its current 8 male teams across juniors and seniors, improve the culture, place an emphasis on welcoming all individuals as well as highlighting efforts to gain a female presence once again after Covid-19 challenges. I believe my fresh eyes and business skills can help change Moreland United to become an environment in which 50/50 is attainable in the future.
Odilia is the Director of Teaching and Learning and Associate Professor in her department at The University of Melbourne. She has a long career in medical research in infection and immunity and in tertiary education. Odilia grew up in The Netherlands and is passionate about the game of football and community sport and working towards an inclusive and safe community where all can enjoy playing football. Odilia has been involved with Glen Eira FC since 2014 and has two children playing at the Club. Aside from volunteer roles with their teams, she is an Age Group Coordinator, the Child Safety Officer (acting) and currently appointed as the Vice President of the Club.