Touch footy a family affair

BENDIGO Touch Football Association launched their free four-week Youth in Touch and Switch programs for women and children at the Tom Flood Sports Centre yesterday.

State project coordinator for the Switch program Tarryn McDowall said the initiative provides women with a safe space to try out a new sport, while having the Youth in Touch Program running alongside it gives mothers the chance to prioritise their own health.

“With this program in particular we’re trying to overcome certain barriers by having a program where they can put their kids on and they don’t have to focus on the kids, they can focus on themselves,” she said.

“We’re building up women’s confidence in themselves, in their skills, building up that resilience to give it a go. We’re really trying to build up that culture of inclusiveness.

“Once people do the program they absolutely love it and they come back again and again.”

President of the BTFA Olivia Holmes said the Youth in Touch program teaches children equally important skills like teamwork in a beginner friendly environment.

“You have to learn to share and that’s one of the good things about touch is to do a good play and to score a try sometimes you really do have to rely on other people and work together,” she said.

“This program is really focussing on building up those younger kids, getting their skills up and their knowledge of the sport and that way it can feed into our competition and then they can play with their parents and friends as well.”

“It is a family orientated sport especially up here in Bendigo and we do have a lot of families with younger kids waiting to play,” she said.

The programs funded by VicHealth will run for another three weeks from 5.30pm on Wednesday nights. More information is available on the Bendigo Touch Footy Facebook page.