Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Head of AFLNT Sam Gibson explains plans to grow participation of women and girls in the sport an provides an update on the community comp in Alice Springs

Transcript

Head of AFLNT Sam Gibson explains plans to grow participation of women and girls in the sport an provides an update on the community comp in Alice Springs · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: We do know that well the Northern Territory AFL.
• 0:03
  Speaker 2: They have indeed released their NT Women and Girls Action
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  Speaker 2: Plan now it strives for equal participation and representation by
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  Speaker 2: twenty thirty. So the Northern Territory, as I think most
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  Speaker 2: of us know, has seen significant growth in women and
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  Speaker 2: girls in that space, leading to the national average for participation.
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  Speaker 2: So well, sorry, it's leading the national average for participation.
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  Speaker 2: I'll tell you what, if you've got a daughter that
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  Speaker 2: plays footy, or if you are a woman or a
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  Speaker 2: girl that's involved in footy, you will know that it
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  Speaker 2: is something that we absolutely love here in the Northern Territory.
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  Speaker 2: And joining me on the line to tell us a
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  Speaker 2: little bit more about the plan and where things are sitting.
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  Speaker 2: It's ahead of AFL here in the Northern Territory. Sam Gibson,
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  Speaker 2: Good morning to you, Sam.
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  Speaker 3: Good morning KURTI. Thanks for having me on.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, great to have you on the show. Sam.
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  Speaker 2: Firstly, talk us through this NT Women and Girls Action Plan.
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  Speaker 2: It's obviously striving for equal per anticipation and representation by
• 1:02
  Speaker 2: twenty thirty. We seem to be doing pretty well in
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  Speaker 2: the Northern Territory. I would have thought when it comes
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  Speaker 2: to when it comes to women and girls taking part
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  Speaker 2: in IFL.
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  Speaker 3: Yeah, like we didn't what we are doing really well
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  Speaker 3: and some of those that you know that you've just
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  Speaker 3: mentioned we're really proud of. I mean to have near
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  Speaker 3: nearly forty percent of our regions participants of women and
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  Speaker 3: girls in the territory, So now that's nearly double the
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  Speaker 3: national average, which is which is fantastic. You know, there's
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  Speaker 3: success stories all over the territory. You know, in Tennant
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  Speaker 3: Creek we've got a women's competition up and running and
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  Speaker 3: really thriving. The success over on Elkal Island and all
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  Speaker 3: over the place. So for us, it was about you know,
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  Speaker 3: maximizing that momentum that there is there and an interest
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  Speaker 3: that there is there, and formalizing a plan and having
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  Speaker 3: some ambitious targets around equal representation, not just on the field,
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  Speaker 3: so getting that figure up the fifty percent, but also
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  Speaker 3: off it, focusing on umpiring and coaching and leadership roles
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  Speaker 3: at in clubs you know, and everything else that makes
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  Speaker 3: the game kick.
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  Speaker 1: So talk us through you know those aims.
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  Speaker 2: I guess because you've said there you obviously want it
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  Speaker 2: to be equal participation.
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  Speaker 1: We're not too far off at.
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  Speaker 3: Yeah. Look, I'm that last ten percent probably going to
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  Speaker 3: be the hardest bit to get, I think. So you know,
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  Speaker 3: we are focusing on on participation, you know, making sure
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  Speaker 3: that we've got all all girls of kick centers for example,
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  Speaker 3: and you know, we're prioritizing participation opportunities for women and girls.
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  Speaker 3: So that's that's a key part of it. But we
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  Speaker 3: also acknowledge in order to in order to grow that
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  Speaker 3: participation and really embed the strong role that women and
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  Speaker 3: girls have in the game, we need to have more
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  Speaker 3: women coaches for example, you know, have more women officiating
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  Speaker 3: the game. I think you know, we've increasing the leadership roles, sorry,
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  Speaker 3: the number of women in leadership roles in football as
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  Speaker 3: well to enable that at the grassroots, and I think
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  Speaker 3: only it's about thirty per cent of our senior leadership
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  Speaker 3: positions on committees a female. So that's another area which
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  Speaker 3: will enable that growth. Look, when you unpack it in
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  Speaker 3: a plan, there's always something you can do better, and
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  Speaker 3: that's what this plan is aiming to do, and you know,
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  Speaker 3: to get it to get it to fifty percent by
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  Speaker 3: twenty thirty, where hoping for a lot earlier than that
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  Speaker 3: that it's given a sur flag and the hill to
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  Speaker 3: aim at.
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  Speaker 1: I reckon it's a really good thing.
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  Speaker 2: And you know, one thing I've noticed as the parent
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  Speaker 2: of both girl and boy playing in the in the
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  Speaker 2: AFL here in the Northern Territory is that there does
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  Speaker 2: seem to be those very equal pathways no matter what
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  Speaker 2: gender you are, which I think is a really important
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  Speaker 2: thing for the kids that are coming up through the ranks.
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  Speaker 3: And that's right. You know, we want every territory to
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  Speaker 3: be able to play the game. And you know that
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  Speaker 3: starts with providing the same opportunities for boys and girls
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  Speaker 3: and men and women. And you know it sounds simple
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  Speaker 3: in saying it, there's a lot of things that need
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  Speaker 3: to be factored in and invested in to make sure
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  Speaker 3: that happens. You know, we're trying to invest in infrastructure
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  Speaker 3: to make sure their venues are friendly to both both
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  Speaker 3: tenders all venders for example, and all those other things
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  Speaker 3: around coaching and are hiring and not touched on, Sam,
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  Speaker 3: I do.
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  Speaker 2: Want to ask you while I've got you on the
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  Speaker 2: line as well. I know that AFLNT has released the
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  Speaker 2: fixture for the twenty twenty three Central Australian Football League.
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  Speaker 2: It is obviously following on from the Community Football Summit
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  Speaker 2: which was convened by AFL Northern Territory and held back
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  Speaker 2: in March.
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  Speaker 1: And it does.
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  Speaker 2: Follow on from those calls or from the decision that
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  Speaker 2: was made from the allae Springstown Council to not have
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  Speaker 2: those games in Alice Springs. But I do know that
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  Speaker 2: they've been fixtured to take part or take place I
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  Speaker 2: should say, at Trager Park. How's it going to work?
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  Speaker 2: Does the council? Have the council changed their minds?
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  Speaker 3: There's obviously been some back and forth with council around
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  Speaker 3: Trager Park in particular and the access to that. I mean,
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  Speaker 3: we we've we had a license agreement for that ven
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  Speaker 3: year through for another few years, and you know, on
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  Speaker 3: speaking to the various stakeholders and bringing those people together
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  Speaker 3: at the Community Football Summit, and it was clear that
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  Speaker 3: people wanted to play at Trager and but it was
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  Speaker 3: also clear that there was some other considerations that were
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  Speaker 3: were important as well as it related to increasing remote
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  Speaker 3: fixtures and really honing in continuing to hone in on
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  Speaker 3: infrastructure and communities and those things. So the fixture we've
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  Speaker 3: released has some of those compromises, A shorter season it's
• 6:03
  Speaker 3: spreading around out across weekends to limit the or sort
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  Speaker 3: of reduce the visitation into the town and make that
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  Speaker 3: a bit more manageable, you know, amongst other things. So
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  Speaker 3: you know, we've we've done as much as work as
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  Speaker 3: we can on that fixture to make sure we've encapsulated
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  Speaker 3: all the feedback. And you know, we know football is
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  Speaker 3: really important to all communities across the territory and the country,
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  Speaker 3: and you know it's about executing that and in a
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  Speaker 3: in a stafe and responsible manner now.
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  Speaker 2: And so do you think that that the Ella Springstown
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  Speaker 2: Council are going to sort of be happy with this
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  Speaker 2: or do you think that you might be in a
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  Speaker 2: situation where you're sort of going to be relying on
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  Speaker 2: you know, that license agreement that you've got to to
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  Speaker 2: I guess sort of force it to happen.
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  Speaker 3: Well, I think that I think the opportunity exists for
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  Speaker 3: for our springs and Central Australia at the moment is
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  Speaker 3: that this has opened up a really good and productive
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  Speaker 3: conversation around how to progress the game more broadly. So
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  Speaker 3: you know, we keep saying we've read it right now
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  Speaker 3: than we're really hoping to work with the town council
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  Speaker 3: and all the other key stakeholders to progress the game.
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  Speaker 3: And you know, we're talking about a football season which
• 7:26
  Speaker 3: goes over a ten or eleven weeks. At the moment,
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  Speaker 3: we need to be considering the bigger picture and how
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  Speaker 3: we work together to use football for you for the
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  Speaker 3: betterment of communities in a year round. So that's what
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  Speaker 3: we're focused on, and hopefully we can continue to engage
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  Speaker 3: with the town council and land councils and other local
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  Speaker 3: government agencies and the territory government and all of the
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  Speaker 3: stakeholders who are really key to that broader discussion.
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  Speaker 2: Well, we'll certainly try and get in contact with the
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  Speaker 2: Alla Springstown councilor as well and find out how the
• 8:00
  Speaker 2: feeling now that that fixture has been released. But by
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  Speaker 2: the sounds of it, it's going to see a reduction
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  Speaker 2: in the number of games that do take place in Allis.
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  Speaker 3: Yeah, that's right, and that was you know, it was
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  Speaker 3: feedback that we heard and we've been able to make
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  Speaker 3: some compromises but in the fixture to enable us. So
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  Speaker 3: you know, we're looking forward to getting the season underways.
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  Speaker 3: In addition to the town competition and other competitions across
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  Speaker 3: the territory. You know it's a focus of ours the
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  Speaker 3: next six months.
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  Speaker 2: Well, Sam, we always appreciate your time. Thank you very
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  Speaker 2: much for having a chat with us this morning, and
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  Speaker 2: thanks for having a chat with us about the equal
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  Speaker 2: participation as well or the aims to get there as
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  Speaker 2: well by twenty thirty with the women and girls.
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  Speaker 1: Always good to have a chat with you. Thanks Katie,
• 8:47
  Speaker 1: thank you