Female football explosion puts the pinch on South Australian facilities with 171 ovals required
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An explosion in the number of female football players in South Australia is forecast to put the pinch on existing facilities, as the state league estimates 171 new ovals will be required over the next eight years in response.
South Australian National Football (SANFL) figures released this month show there are 6,602 females playing football this year, up 140 per cent from 2,741 in 2016.
The SANFL Women's league increased from four to six teams last year, with prize money now increasing to $20,000, which it says is "the largest prize money pool of any women's state league competition in Australia".
The league's juniors have grown from 16 female teams in 2016 to a staggering 98 teams this year, while four new regional women's leagues have been launched in the Mid North, the Lower Eyre Peninsula, Yorke Peninsula and the Riverland.
More teams have joined existing women's leagues in the Limestone Coast, in the Barossa-Gawler and Great Southern regions.
The skyrocketing participation rates have left the SANFL eyeing the future for demands on facilities.
It calculates it will need 171 new ovals across metropolitan Adelaide by 2026 for a projected 13,500 new female players.
The SANFL believes this will cost more than $220 million to address, while making existing change rooms "compliant" for females will cost $161 million.
The participation statistics, put together in consultation with the University of Adelaide and Footyweb, found more than 90 per cent of change rooms were not suitable for female players, and 87 per cent were unsuitable for female umpires.
There are already female changing rooms in development at Sturt and Norwood football clubs, while $90,000 in local government money is being spent for female facilities at the South Adelaide Football Club, which won this year's women's grand final.
Port Adelaide looks to enter SANFLW
The Port Adelaide Football Club is planning to join the SANFL's women's league next year after expanding its female junior programs, the general manager of football Chris Davies said.
"We have expressed our interest in being a part of the SANFLW competition previously, and remain committed to working in conjunction with the SANFL and AFL to find the best possible mutual outcome for PAFC to have a team competing at a senior women's state league level in 2019."
If successful, it will join Sturt, Glenelg, West Adelaide, Norwood, South Adelaide and North Adelaide for the 10-round competition.
With the burgeoning female interest, the total number of umpires registered in SA has also increased from 1,618 in 2016 to 2,148 last year, while there are 522 umpires in the SANFL juniors this year compared to 360 in 2017.
The statistics also reported a 5 per cent increase in male club participation between 2008 and 2016 and an 18 per cent increase in Auskick participation between 2013 and 2016.
It found that 8 per cent of ovals were not fit for purpose and 21 per cent did not meet minimum training standards.
The SA Football Commission is this week meeting to consider recommendations from the league about the SANFLW season next year.
Topics: sanfl, australian-football-league, human-interest, women, adelaide-5000, sa
