Two almost entirely indigenous women’s soccer teams have been denied entry to another Perth league after the break-up of their previous competition.
The women’s teams of Queens Park and Koongamia football clubs played in the capital’s football league.
The women’s premier premier MFL 2021 lured into the Perth Football League. Another club withdrew at the start of the 2022 season, and on the other three sides one, Murdoch, found it difficult to field a full squad.
In just two rounds of the season, Queens Park and Kungamia approached the Perth Football League in hopes of being able to join the competition from scratch and work in existing tournaments, but were rejected.
Kirsten Lynch moved to Queens Park last season to become one of the first players on the club’s women’s team.
“We created a team. It means a lot to me; we are all a family, ”she said.
“I feel that this crowd is my sisters – Queens Park and Kungamia – it’s a community.
“My eldest daughter was going to come and play with us this year, but now the league is over, she’s playing in Carrat.”
Ms. Lynch said her daughter, who turns 16 this year, wanted to play with her family members before realizing her dream of playing in the WAFLW next year.
“It’s very nice for young girls to come and play on this team,” she said.
“It’s a safe place for a young crowd … We have a lot of girls from the north who go to boarding school, and we’re here as their family … It’s sisterhood.”
Ms. Lynch said Indigenous players felt isolated in her previous club, which led to her joining Queen’s Park.
Perth Football League executive director Ben Haywood said there was no precedent for admitting teams after the start of the season.
“Our constitution says that we must follow the process of adopting new clubs,” he said.
“Despite this, we have encouraged clubs to contact PFL clubs to see if their women’s teams will play against them in friendly matches in their farewell rounds.
“I appreciate it ideally, they want a full season. We can’t do it in 2022, but we can do it in 2023.
“We want these women to be able to play within our powers and to the best of our ability. We can see this as part of the process in the 2023 season if they want to go down that path, ”he said.
Supporter Megan Kraquer, whose family has strong ties to Australian football, said the WAFL and AFL had appealed for the decision.
“(Queens Park and Koongamia) said they’re ready to start at the bottom of the stairs, two rounds behind … they just want to pull on their boots,” she said.
Koongamia football club president Chris Ryder said many teammates probably wouldn’t have played without the support of his family members, who also played football.
“The Perth Football League has invited us to play friendly matches against teams in their farewell rounds, but that leaves other teams behind if they want to play with us,” he said.
“We want our players to be taken seriously. Our ideal result would be for the girls to continue playing for their teams in one of the four competitions. ”
Former WAFLW player Nadia Jetta said Queens Park outfit had an “absolutely amazing” culture.
“This club is 100 times better in terms of family, connections and culture,” she said.
“It’s so nice to see how connected and connected we are as a team … and when we play Kungami, what we have is amazing.”
Koongamia women’s captain Shannon Anderson said her side feels like family.
“It’s inspiring … to see young teenagers, when they play futsal and sports, work to make something of themselves,” she said.
Supporter Marvin Eads said the two predominantly indigenous teams, which are unable to play in the competition, were “slapped” for women’s footballers and indigenous players.
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