By ALINDA BRYANT
FOLLOWING a hugely successful 2014 and 2015 seasons, Noosa Lions Ladies football teams have stepped up to play in the Sunshine Coast Premier League.
Friday 18 March saw the teams take their first steps into the unknown with home games against the established teams from Woombye.
A depleted reserve grade team, under the guidance of Phil Amson, fought hard but, unfortunately, recorded a loss while the Premier women let a two goal lead slip to record a 2-2 draw.
But delighted head coach Chris Roche was full of praise for the teams which were not only both competing in their first ever games at this level, but were also experiencing their first ever games in their respective teams.
Friday 1 April will see both teams travel to Maroochydore to take on the mighty Maroochydore Swans.
The club is commitment to expanding the female form of the game.
With the recent success of the Matildas, female football is being taken very seriously, especially with the Matildas qualification for the Rio Olympics.
The FFA’s Women’s Football Strategic Plan lays down a framework for national expansion of the women’s game and with more than 100,000 women and girls playing football in Australia it is definitely a growth area.
At Noosa there are two new all-girl teams in the U11-12 competition.
The opportunity to play in a girls’ only competition has proved very popular and will assist the club in developing a pathway for the progression of our girls into the senior level game.
The aim is to keep the girls playing from when they start in Under 6, all the way through to seniors.
In addition to the Under 11/12 teams, Noosa Lions also has two Under 14 girls teams and an Under 16 girls team which are all looking to excel in the 2016 season.
Noosa Lions caters for all levels of junior players, from beginners to experienced, and still has a limited number of places available across the board, but in particular in the Under 14s category and Senior Women’s team, where head coach Chris Roche is recruiting experienced players for the premier women’s squad.
Anyone interested in playing should contact Sandra Jones on 0418 398 418 or Chris Roche on 0417 712 338.
