Girls Youth League Season Launch Brings Focus on Creativity and Wellbeing
More than 200 technical and coaching staff from Girls Youth League (GYL) and Girls Junior Development League (GJDL) clubs gathered at Valentine Sports Park over the weekend for the official launch of the 2026 Girls Youth League season.
The season launch centred on the theme of “Developing creativity within our players”, alongside the growing importance of implementing structured wellbeing programs to support both players and coaching staff throughout the season.
Football NSW staff members Bryce Deaton (Goalkeeping), Joe Fox (JDL) and Stephen Bott (GYL) delivered a series of age-appropriate coaching sessions and workshops. These sessions focused on fostering creativity, encouraging decision-making, and supporting players to express themselves both in training environments and match scenarios.
The event was further strengthened by the presence of Football Australia Junior and Young Matildas National Team Coaches Mike Cooper and Alex Epakis, who delivered practical sessions centred on creativity, intervention methods and empowering players to make confident decisions on the field.
As the Club Standards & Benchmarking Framework enters its third year, clubs were also briefed on its ongoing role in shaping youth football. At the conclusion of the 2026 season, benchmarking outcomes will help determine competition structures and league formats for the 2027 season.
Football NSW Club Technical Development Manager Neil Mann highlighted the importance of the weekend, saying:
“It has been a great weekend of collaboration and learning for all involved, and it was fantastic to see so many coaches in attendance and buying into the vision of the Club Standards and Benchmarking Framework.
“While the framework retains a competition element, it recognises that the success of a youth development program should not be determined solely by league outcomes. Instead, it provides guiding principles to help clubs create positive environments and cultures that support the holistic development of all stakeholders — both on and off the pitch — while allowing clubs to retain their own identity.
“The Club Development team looks forward to supporting clubs throughout the season and evaluating their programs.”
Catherine Cannuli, Technical Director of SD Raiders and Football Australia National Team Assistant Coach, emphasised the value of collective learning:
“Bringing everyone into the same room for this conference was invaluable. It created a shared understanding, a common language and clear alignment around expectations at this level of the game.
“For our club, it reinforces the direction we are heading and ensures our coaches are equipped to lead with clarity, confidence and purpose. Hearing directly from those setting the standards allows us to better understand what is required of us — not only in our coaching practice, but in how we develop players and people.
“These moments of connection and learning are critical in ensuring we continue to grow, evolve and lead in the right way.”
Young Matildas National Team Coach Alex Epakis echoed the positive sentiment:
“It was a fantastic weekend, with coaches showing strong open-mindedness and a genuine eagerness to explore key areas such as positive coaching approaches, creativity and different intervention styles within a girls’ development space.\
“The level of engagement and discussion created an excellent learning environment. It was a pleasure to be part of the weekend and connect with the coaching community.”
Wellbeing professional Holly Fuda delivered a keynote presentation highlighting the importance of embedding wellbeing programs into club models and season planning.
“Presenting to junior and youth-age coaches made the conversation particularly meaningful. Keeping the strategies small yet powerful allows them to be easily embedded into everyday coaching practice, while also creating opportunities to build on these foundations over time as athletes progress through the system.
“What stood out for me was the strong alignment between the wellbeing content and the Club Benchmarking Standards, the openness and engagement from coaches, the focus on practical and age-appropriate strategies, and the emphasis on long-term development rather than one-off interventions.
“It is exciting to be involved with an organisation that clearly sees the value of athlete wellbeing.”
Football NSW Head of Football Development Ed Ferguson reflected on the broader impact of the event:
“The curiosity and contribution across both days is testament to our ecosystem, with coaches from Girls Under 10 through to the Under 20 National Team sharing, challenging and working alongside one another.
“What stood out most was the common theme across all discussions — putting the person first, before the player. Every club in attendance highlighted their responsibility to develop better individuals through football, and that puts us in a strong position to create environments built on trust, connection and positive growth.”
