New league has encouraged former youth girls to pull on boots

AFL Barwon’s new senior women’s competition has given players a chance to pull on the boots again and play closer to home.

That’s what Grovedale coach Ben O’Regan has discovered, with more than half his side made up of women who have played youth girls football at a minimum.

Many, like Round 1 star Natalie French and her twin sister Lauren, gave up the sport after their junior careers ended.

Grovedale also boasts a few players, such as captain Jenny Male, who decided to travel to Melbourne to continue their football journeys.

“They played some junior football at Grovedale and then went and played junior football at Barwon Heads, and then they had some time away from football,” O’Regan said of the French twins.

“I’m not speaking for them, but like a lot of women here that weren’t aligned to North Geelong or Drysdale, they went away from it with work and life commitments.

“You obviously get that drawcard of a senior level competition that’s being refined, brought back into Geelong and here to stay, so people like Natalie and Lauren have that pathway now to senior football and can play the game that they love.”

Vice-captain Michelle Hennessy is another that’s made Grovedale her new home, after stints at North Geelong and Darebin Falcons.

“You’d think they’ve been playing since they were in primary school,” O’Regan said, after the Tigers registered a 61point season-opening win last weekend. “To me, it’s a great achievement for them and probably what’s been the most enlightening part of the whole process for me, seeing that development.”

The Tigers come up against Geelong Amateur today, who proved no match for powerhouse North Geelong last weekend.

“I wouldn’t read a lot into that other than North Geelong is one of the benchmark sides in the competition,” O’Regan said. “But then again, reading into the Round 1 results, you could have six teams that are benchmark sides and six that aren’t.

“It's going to take a lot teething out over a number of weeks of that grading process to see where everyone is at.

I wouldn’t underestimate Geelong Amateur. I’m sure they would have learnt a lot from that North Geelong experience.”