Switching up sport for women

WOMEN who have been considering trying or returning to team sport are invited to join the Ballarat Touch Football Association’s new Switch program.

Coordinator Sally Bingham said the four-week program will run on Monday evenings during term four with an aim of getting adult women of all ages involved in social sport.

“It’s all about taking away barriers from coming back to sport and giving women the skills and fitness to be able to enjoy it from the start,” she said.

“We’ll cover skills around ball-handling and a few rules of the game so they’re familiar with it if they choose to continue playing. There will be some fitness exercises involved as well.

“It’s catered to all fitness levels and skill levels. It’s easily adaptable, and wherever people are at, we meet them there. For those with a high fitness level, we can challenge them as well.”

Touch football may be unfamiliar to many women, but Ms Bingham said it’s an activity she expects many would enjoy.

“It’s a good sport because it is very collaborative, and it is very social. It can be played mixed, or single sex, and its very child friendly, so it’s a good way to get families involved together,” she said.

Ballarat Touch Football Association runs mixed and single sex comps, and the Switch program is a pathway for new players to get involved in those if they wish to continue with the sport beyond the initial four weeks.

The Switch program has previously been run by Touch Football Victoria, but not in Ballarat in recent years. It will run from 5.30pm to 6.30pm from Monday, 10 October at Russell Square.

Follow facebook.com/ballarattouch for updates, and contact the page to express interest.