Motions

AFL National Women's League

The Hon. T.T. NGO (16:08): I move:

That this council—

1. Congratulates the AFL for establishing the National Women's League;

2. Wishes the players all the best for the inaugural 2017 season; and

3. Recognises the important role that providing elite sporting pathways for women plays to encourage girls to participate in sport.

Roughly 25 per cent of Australian Rules football players Australia-wide are women. Last year, 195,000 women across Australia played the sport. Since 2015, there has been a 60 per cent increase in the number of women and girls playing club Australian Rules football in South Australia. There are 17 clubs and 27 teams in the open women's and over 18s competitions in the South Australian Women's Football League. Since last season, there has been a 15 per cent increase in the number of girls participating in Auskick. Clearly, women and girls want to play football and are doing so in increasing numbers. Despite this, only men have been able to compete fully at the elite level. Needless to say, an AFL National Women's League has been a long time in the making.

Honourable members may or may not be aware that women have been playing Australian Rules football since World War I. Originally, exhibition games were organised by a group of retailers to provide entertainment and raise funds for soldiers, among other causes. There are some reports that women continued to play for teams in subsequent years. However, the real push towards an organised competition for women began with the establishment of state-based women's football leagues, the first of which was created in Victoria in 1981, and then came Western Australia in 1988. I seek leave to continue my remarks.

Leave granted; debate adjourned.