Football set to be more accessible for players in the Bankstown District Amateur Football Association

The Bankstown District Amateur Football Association is making football more accessible for all players in 2020.

BDAFA General Manager Leanne Miller said the association would continue to incentivise clubs for fielding girls-only teams in under-6 to under-9 age groups for Small Sided Games (SSG).

The BDAFA has committed to a $50 rebate per player registered to a girls-only SSG team in 2020 to all clubs which participate in the competition.

“We are really passionate about continuing to grow the women’s game in our association,” Miller said.

“We had great success with this last season and we really want to build on that in 2020.

“The girls who signed up really enjoyed it and it was the first time we’ve had an all-girls competition in those age groups on Saturdays and everyone had a really good time.

“Previously I think a lot of girls would have been scared to join because they would have been playing with or against boy, but the all-girls competitions has certainly helped to encourage girls to take up the sport at a younger age and we’re hoping the players who signed up in 2019 encourage their friends and sisters to join them in 2020.

“We saw a lot of girls come down and watch their friends or sisters during last season so we’re really encouraging those girls to put on some boots and give it a try next season.”

At the other end of the scale, the BDAFA will also be launching a brand new men’s competition which will play matches on Sundays in 2020.

“We’re excited to be launching this because we know there are a lot of men who aren’t able to play on Saturdays because of work,” Miller said.

“The Sunday competition will be a stand-alone comp from the Platinum League which runs on Saturdays

“The Saturday men’s competition has 10 divisoins, but we know that we’re missing players who can’t play on Saturdays so the Sunday competition is aimed at making the game accessible for them as well as providing those who play on Saturdays greater flexibility.”

With 21 clubs and competitions and programs catering for players from under-6 right up to over-45s, there are countless opportunities for players to take up or continue to engage with the sport in 2020.

To find your local club, you can call the BDAFA office on (02) 9771-3322, or visit http://www.bdafa.com.au/ to learn more about the association, its competitions and its clubs or you can view details in the graphic below.