The Goulburn Valley Suns are seeking expressions of interest for female players looking to commit to taking on some of the best women's and girls’ teams in the state across the NPLW, with an aim to build long-term stability in the female arm of the sport for years to come in the region.
“There's been a little bit of interest so far,” Suns coach Craig Carley said after his club asked for feedback earlier this week.
“There will be some pretty strong regulations from Football Victoria before they would give us a license.
“We don't want to just get a team up for a year and then lose it again - it has to be sustainable.”
And with the under-20 Young Matildas booked to play Asian Cup qualifiers in Shepparton next year, the groundswell of support for an NPLW presence in the region will only get stronger.
“Personally it has always been a big passion of mine, women's football. The participation rates are always growing,” Carley said.
“It would be a great opportunity for women and girls in the region and it's the perfect time to explore that with the Young Matildas coming to Shepparton next year.
“We see it with the young local girls here, they have to play in the boys’ comps at the moment (if they want to play at NPL junior level) but if we can give them the correct pathway to play against girls their own age it will really help their development.
“We always hate seeing young talent have to move away from the region to further their skills. If they can instead do that at our doorstep that would be ideal.”
“But we need the numbers to be able to explore it with FV, so we need players to express their interest.”
Interested players can head to the GV Suns Facebook page to put their hand up to be involved.
“The club is really passionate about it and the board is buying into the message of what we want to achieve in the community and really supporting us,” Carley said.
“We want to explore every avenue we can to make it happen and now it's up to the community to buy in and get behind us.”
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