More than football: Peninsula Sharks build community for young players

WHEN girls on the Bellarine needed somewhere to play football, the Peninsula Sharks answered the call. Four years later, the club is a testament to the impact of community sport on young people.

New AFL Barwon data shows female football participation continues to grow across the region, and few clubs understand the needs of these players better than the Sharks.

The all-girls football club was founded in 2023 to support players from the Portarlington, Drysdale, Queenscliff and Leopold football netball clubs to continue playing football.

As the club continues to evolve, the committee says its success comes from listening to the people it impacts most: the players.

By placing girls at the centre of its decisions, president Belinda Harvey said the club has become a safe space for social connection and belonging, which is essential to keeping girls involved in sport.

“Being the only female junior club in the region, we can really grow the club to what the girls say that they need it to be,” Harvey said.

“We’re not restrained by having to worry about those other arms of the club like netball or senior football at all.

“Being able to provide them the environment that they’re saying that they want to thrive is pretty cool.”

Harvey said having women in leadership positions had also been central to the club’s culture, helping players see themselves represented.

Before her daughter joined the Sharks, Kelly McIvor knew little about football.

After moving to the Bellarine from New South Wales, she said the club had become an important source of friendship and community for her family.

Now a committee member, McIvor said the Sharks had provided a valuable social and emotional support network for both her and her daughter.

“It’s changed my life being on the committee because I’ve made friends. I’m part of something bigger,”

McIvor said.

“I didn’t know anything about football and now I’ve learned about friendship and about teamship. I’m really proud to be part of something like this.”

McIvor said the club has helped her daughter build confidence both on and off the field.

Harvey said the club continues to evolve each season by responding to player feedback.

“We focus on trying to give the girls as much voice as we can,” she said.

“I do think it’s harder to be something that you can’t see so we’ve been really lucky to have women step into these roles but also to have passionate and empathetic men who have stepped up and really want to see these girls thrive.

“One of the main reasons why the club has grown how it has is because the girls feel listened to and they feel like it’s an environment that’s purely there to support them and their sport.”

Under-17s coach Jason Reyntjes has been involved with the Sharks since the club first formed.

He said watching players grow in confidence while surrounded by other girls has been one of the most rewarding parts of his time with the club.

Four years into the program, he said players are more comfortable on the field and their skills have improved significantly.

“The girls are more relaxed around each other because they’re not intimidated by the boys or senior footballers,” Reyntjes said.

“It’s just an extra thing that they don’t have to worry about so they can focus on their footy, they’re not feeling self-conscious or isolated.”