Illawarra women’s rugby history has a colourful past with this being the third attempt to reinvent the sport within the region.

The Wollongong Valkyries are the female facet of the successful Wollongong Vikings Rugby Union Club; yet lack the financial support and community interest.

Former Valkyries player, Tori Esler, said about the failure of the previous attempt at an Illawarra women’s competition; “I loved playing rugby in Wollongong, it was sad when a lack of resources and interest in the region caused the competition to collapse.”

Esler blames the small community for not allowing women to be given equality in rugby union.

During their second effort to create a local competition, the Vikings had no option but to join the Sydney second grade league, due to a lack of interest from females in the Wollongong area.

Players are urging interested females to help them re-invent a female rugby competition in the area and for local businesses to support women in sport, in the same way that sponsorship is given to the successful men’s league.

The Wollongong Valkyries outlined in 2005 after there previous competition re-launch, a desire to establish a new competition in Wollongong by 2010, however, this is soon becoming an unreachable objective.

The track for Mountain biking will be established for members of the club and will also be used to host school, local, state and national mountain biking competitions.

Kate McMillan, one of the few female riders in the region said, “The new track will be a great development in the area for the sport. The Illawarra does not have many places for people to practice their biking skills, and this new track will allow for Wollongong to build it’s profile as a mountain biking venue ”

The track area will be in Tongarra and is named Greenvalleys Freeride Park.

The land was donated by a local resident, who said on the site website that the track is “A slopestyle competition course, [with] a variety of Freeride tracks to suit all skill levels.”

The Illawarra has few locations where mountain bikes are permitted to ride with most races being held in Appin. The Wollongong Mountain Bike Club have claimed that they are currently working on developing legal trails in the Illawarra with the assistance of Wollongong City Council. 

There have been doubts expressed from both junior and senior female clubs, who believe that the unification process could lower the profile of women in soccer in the Illawarra, which has seen significant increase in the past two years.

“If we were to unify, it is quite possible that the majority of funding would be given to the male clubs and the male aspects of the association giving the majority of media coverage to them as well.” Said Stingrays player, Jess Cooper.

The unification process began in September 2007, with the intention of allowing all Football clubs to come ‘…under the umbrella of this one local unified single entity.’

Yet another concern about the process was voiced on Sunday, with Figtree Girls Under 18s coach Jenny Davis claiming, “Men traditionally get paid much more in sport, and because women do need get paid in soccer in the Illawarra, I do not know how they will make it equal.”

With all football bodies included in the unification, including junior and representative leagues, it is debatable if the unification process will even become a reality.

The ten bodies involved in the unification remain separate until all parties can reach an agreement of what the unification should entail.

Coniston Football Club has the lease of JJ. Kelly Park and throughout this year have leased it to the Illawarra Stingrays’ as their home ground also, but the meeting with Coniston proved to be devastating for the women’s club when Coniston refused to accept the notion of making the ground a permanent base for both clubs.

The grant proposed to Wollongong City Council by Stingrays’ club President, Rob McKie, aimed at making JJ. Kelly Park meet a state league standard, replacing the grass ground with a synthetic field and installing a grand stand to hold a minimum of 500 people.

“The outcome of the meeting was very disappointing, it would have been a good push for women’s soccer,” said Mr McKie.

The Stingrays’ will maintain the sub-lease for JJ. Kelly Park from Coniston until the end of the season, when the club said it will need to look elsewhere.

A representative from Tarrawanna Soccer Club, men’s league claimed; “Coniston were in no obligation to agree to the Stingrays receiving a grant, as it may have impacted their contribution to JJ. Kelly Park in the future.”

JJ. Kelly Park had been closed for several weeks earlier in the year, due to an infestation of bugs in the soil after heavy rain falls.

The Stingrays’ have claimed that they need a home ground on a permanent basis, with better conditions, as the current state of JJ. Kelly Park has caused much debate.

Illawarra Stingrays play at JJ. Kelly Park on Sunday

Jess: Since I was thirteen and I’m 24 now. But four years with the Stingrays, so I’ve been here since the club started.

Hannah: Yeah I’ve been playing since I was 12 and I have been here from the start as well.

Do you get fewer opportunities in soccer then the men’s competition?

Jess: With our club because we focus purely on being a female club I do see it because we do not nee to compete with the male aspect of a club like other people do. But we do get less media attention, which makes it a lot harder.

Hannah: Yeah financial backing is the biggest issue we get so much less sponsorship then the men’s competition do, making it harder to get new equipment.

Is it difficult to find funding and sponsorship being a female club?

Jess: Yeah. The only major sponsorship we have had in the entire four years is from Infocus which is like $40 000. We do not get paid to play like the men’s competition does.

Hannah: Because we are purely a female club some sponsors have difficulty sponsoring us because we do not get much media attention like the men’s league.

Are there stereotypes within female soccer?

Jess: Yes because they do associate soccer girls with being lesbians. We need to be maybe act a bit more professional and rise above comments that place us in some category that were not.

Hannah: Yeah we do get stereotyped in w way, it happens to all female sports really.

Do you have many supporters?

Jess: We don’t really get much support from the community, it is really just parents and friends that come to watch our games.

Hannah: Yeah it is really people just associated with the club. All the parents for the younger grades go home after them games and rarely stick around for first grade.

How can you help develop the Stingrays’ image?

Jess; Development days with the junior clubs and more association with the community I think would be the best way.

Hannah: A lot of people do not even know who we are, which always makes it hard. So really we need to establish our profile in the community.

 

Stingrays playing at JJ. Kelly Park

 

Kate McMillan

What make you start mountain bike riding?

I went to races with my brother, who does down hill and thought it could be fun to try. It was easy for me to start riding as my parents are good friend with people who own our local bike shop and they were able to provide me with the right advise and equipment.

How long have you been involved in the sport?

I started riding when I was in year 8, so about six years. But I’ve been involved in the sport through family and friends for as long as I can remember.

What level have you reached in mountain bike riding?

I originally started with club races and from there went to both state and national level. I also raced cross-country at inter-schools in Thredbo and participated in down hill for the first time there as it is encouraged.

Were you discriminated against for being female in a predominantly male sport?

Not really. I normally rode with guys so the didn’t pay me out, they thought it was always a competition to beat me because I’m a girl. Most of the guys thought it was cool to see a girl racing but they always laugh at me when I fall off my bike. People at school also made jokes when I came to school with skin missing from all over my legs.

Are there many females involved in the mountain bike competitions?

No, there are hardly any girls that race cross-country or down hill, it is mostly a male dominated sport. The Australian Institute of Sport run clinics to encourage girls to start riding as cross-country is an Olympic sport. When I went to races to watch my brother, I was intimidated to start riding, as there were not many girls who rode or watched. When girls start mountain bike riding they get a lot of attention from the guys and I think that is one of the reasons why girls aren’t riding. It is disappointing that there are not many girls riding but I do encourage them all to have a go!

Do you find it hard to get sponsorship?

Yes. I think girls in the sport find it harder to get sponsorship as sponsors see how many girls are in each race and don’t see any benefits of sponsoring a female. If you are successful and have the right attitude you can get sponsorship.

What change does mountain bike riding need to attract more females?

Not many people know that it is an Olympic sport, so that could be promoted as a starting point. Mountain bike riding also needs a female face to the sport, as there is no real role model for girls. 

Kate McMillan

Since I was eight, so ten years.

Why did you start playing cricket?

It mostly stemmed from my dad, who was heaps into it. When I was little I would watch it on the television with him and thought I would try it and then it went from there. I started playing for Keira and I was the only girl. There are not many girls who play in the Illawarra. In women’s I started playing down here for West’s, which was the first women’s team and then I moved to Bankstown second grade and there is a lot more girls up there.

Does Sydney differ from the Women’s Cricket league in Wollongong?

Yeah. It is a bit more serious and competitive in Sydney. They pick most of the Australian women’s cricket side from the Sydney competition.

What is the highest level you have reached in Women’s Cricket?

I have played for the New South Wales teams and various representative teams from within the Wollongong area.

Are Women given the same opportunities in Cricket as the men’s competition get?

At a junior level, you do not really notice it that much in terms of opportunity. But at an older level the guys always get the better fields and they always have more spectators and more media coverage.

Is it harder to get sponsorship for being a female cricket team?

Well yes, because we are women and not many people come to watch a women’s cricket team come play unless they know us. The men get better sponsorship opportunities from the bigger companies, were as we get the small, local businesses, like petrol stations.

How can cricket be made equal for both genders?

I think, the major problem we have is that there are girls out there that were interested in playing cricket, they just did not know about the competition. So maybe more advertising to promote girls cricket in Wollongong. The women’s cricket competition is really small in the Illawarra, there were only four female teams and most weeks two of the teams would be short so you would have to forfeit any way.

Why did you start playing rugby union?

Because one of my best friends asked me if I would play for the uni at uni games and I agreed. After playing at uni games I decided to play club rugby for the Vikings.  I think that I was ready for a new challenge as I have played pretty much every sport growing up and enjoyed what rugby had to offer.

Why do you love playing rugby union?

I loved my team and we were very close, we had a lot of camaraderie. We would play for the love of the game. I love playing football, it is a great game and I had just as much fun on the field as off the field. I would recommend it for anyone that wants a sporting challenge and to have the time of their life.

What achievements have you received through rugby union?

We had a pretty successful run the first year I played we won the Sydney competition second grade grand final, which was a big accomplishment and for the next two years we were runner up in the second grade grand final. I represented the Illawarra for rugby one year and Central Coast the next year. I also got merit team selected at uni games. Our team also won EUG’s twice and came second at AUG’s against Newcastle University.

Do you believe Wollongong struggles to beat stereotypes of women playing sports such as rugby union?

Yes I do, more so then country areas and Sydney as they have their own competitions and a lot more support to play. Wollongong is a small community it is harder to broach the subject of women playing football which is evident as there used to be an entire [women’s] rugby union competition in Wollongong.

Do you think women playing ruby union get the same opportunities as the men?

There is not equal opportunity in rugby union as there is still bias for the men, for instance we don’t get much support from the club or from spectators. It took a lot of coercion for money to be given to us. It also took over a year for us to get a physio. At a representative level we had a lot more support and more of an equal opportunity to play.

Tori Esler, playing for Wollongong Valkyries