CLUB CHANGER Club of the Year awards | Football Australia

Today, we are announcing the winners of the Club Changer Club of the Year award for the regional and metropolitan areas. Two clubs, one metropolitan and one regional, stood out because of their commitment to make football more inclusive, accessible, and welcoming for Women & Girls not just on but also off the pitch.

Flinders United Women’s Football Club, from South Australia, has been working since 2021 to make football a safe and inclusive ‘lifetime pathway’ for women and girls. They identified a challenge concerning female players aged 15-years-old and upwards who tended to discontinue their involvement, not just in football but in sports in general. This resulted in the club committing to address the developmental gap between junior and senior players through a strategic and comprehensive action plan.

The club took a proactive approach by engaging senior players as coaches for junior teams, which enhanced the capabilities of players and created a sense of unity within the club. Moreover, Flinders United WFC ensured a careful approach to age-group transitions, avoiding premature moves that could hinder overall growth and skill development.

Shellharbour Junior Football, from Regional New South Wales, have employed different strategies to make sure the women and girls of their club find it a safe place to be part of, and enjoy not just playing but living football.

SJFC decided to tackle specific objectives to increase female participation on and off the pitch, like offering a female only competition for their summer football program, which saw 37 all girls teams and an additional 19 mixed teams participate; encouraging an increase in females to join the committee and achieving 40/40/20 representation (The Club Changer