Macarthur Football Association announces increased opportunities for female players

Hot off the heels of the announcement that Macarthur South West Sydney will be getting its very own A-League team, Macarthur school girls will be able to play in all-girls competition for the first time, thanks to the introduction of a girls ALDI MiniRoos program in 2019.

The Macarthur Football Association (MFA) is looking to provide even more opportunities for the young women in the Macarthur region to take up the world game.

Girl participation in football has grown steadily throughout Australia, and while MFA has enjoyed the benefits of that growth, MFA General Manager Salv Carmusciano hopes that the introduction of an all-girls MiniRoos program will help to fuel that growth at an accelerated rate.

“The structure of MiniRoos provides the perfect introduction for new players,” he said.

“We understand most primary school-aged girls would prefer to play in teams with other girls and against other girls. MiniRoos makes it easy to do this.

“Girls-only leagues will be a first for our association at those age groups. We feel if we can provide the right environment during the primary years, we’ll not only attract new girls but retain them in future years.”

The MFA is encouraging all of its 23 clubs to recruit girls in the under-6 to under-9 age groups to form girls-only teams by waiving team registration fees for all girls’ teams in the MiniRoos competition.

“To encourage clubs to form girls-only teams as a priority, we are offering free team entry for all MiniRoos girls in the under-6 to under-9 teams,” Carmusciano said.

“Further to this, we won’t charge the club for the equivalent number of MiniRoos boys teams they enter within the same age category.

“For instance, if they enter one under-6 or two under-8 girls teams, they won’t have to pay team entry fees for one under-6 or two under-8 boys teams.”

Affordability has been a big point of contention for football players and parents this season and the MFA has committed to doing its bit to combat rising costs by subsidising its own fees to try and combat the introduction of the Football Federation Australia’s national registration fee.

“We understand the cost of football/sport is an issue that may be preventing participation and we just thought it was the right thing to do. It’s a small gesture and we hope that our clubs will consider following suit,” Carmusciano said.

Players in the Macarthur region looking to find their local club should head to: www.macarthurfootball.com.au/play for more information or check out the club listings below.