Blackwood Football Club wins two-year battle for female-friendly changerooms
Blackwood Football Club has had its biggest preseason victory, with a final grant to build a unisex changeroom to cope with the surge in female membership and participation in the sport.
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Leonie and Nick Wilmshurst knew they were on a winner when they met at Blackwood Football Club more than 20 years ago.
But the Coromandel Valley couple reckon they may have just scored their biggest win to-date – the completion of a two-year battle to fund the building of unisex changerooms at their club’s Blackwood Hills Reserve base.
The $750,000 project will finally go ahead after Mitcham Council this month agree to chip in $250,000.
The number of women playing what were traditionally seen as male sports has exploded over the past few years, nowhere more so than at Blackwood Football Club, which could have as many as eight women’s and girls’ teams this season.
But as things have changed, one thing has remained the same – the dilapidated and inadequate changerooms built in the 1980s.
“It’s not nice, in fact it’s absolutely horrid for the girls,” Mrs Wilmshurst says.
“They walk into a changeroom that’s got one urinal in the middle of the room and one toilet.
“The new rooms will make a massive change.”
Mr Wilmshurst, a construction manager, will oversee the project, set to begin later this month.
“Our women and girls have had a lot to say about privacy,” Mr Wilmshurst says.
“You can actually stand out on the oval and see into the changerooms.
“This will strengthen the club to have facilities where women feel comfortable.
“And men will benefit, too. In this day and age, men don’t like standing out in open showers either.”
The surge in female participation in football in SA has been at between 50 to 75 per cent, year-on-year, since 2015.
The success of the Adelaide Crows in the inaugural year of the national women’s competition was, for many, a catalyst into the sport.
The SANFL held a competition for 47 women’s teams in 2017 and 75 teams last year.
It expects that number to increase by about 50 per cent this year.
Females now comprise more than 30 per cent of the total of more than 180,000 participants across all levels of football in SA.
“It’s just been ridiculous at our club,” Mrs Wilmshurst says.
“We started with three teams only two years ago.
“And last year we had five teams and we could be up to eight girls’ and women’s teams this year.
“The club has more than 700 members and there will be more than 150 females in the playing ranks this year.”
Blackwood, which will have 21 teams at all levels in 2019, has been successful in the men’s competitions for decades, last claiming an A-Grade flag just two years ago, so it should be no surprise the hills’ girls are just as strong.
In 2017, its inaugural under-14s girls’ side capped off an incredible season with a 12-point grand final victory over Glenunga in the SANFL Juniors competition.
Its under-16 girls took the flag last season.
“We’ve got multiple players representing the state and SANFL clubs,” Mr Wilmshurst says.
“I can’t see this slowing down any time soon.”
Mitcham Council’s $250,000 grant for the new changerooms – which will also include a disability-friendly toilet – was always contingent on the club securing the remaining funding for the build.
An initial funding application to the former Labor state government was scrapped last year when the Liberals won the election.
But the club refused to give up and took its funding plea to the Federal Government.
“We knew we had such a good application so we thought let’s go for the Federal one (grant),” Mrs Wilmshurst says.
“You’re going up against the whole of Australia – but we got it.”
Blackwood secured just over $456,000 from the Commonwealth, the SANFL chipped in $5000, with the club raising the remaining $35,000.
“We’re lucky we have lots of fabulous volunteers here,” Mrs Wilmshurst says.
“This is a community club and the changerooms will benefit the entire community of Blackwood.
“Blackwood School uses the oval … there are mountain bike riders and people walk their dogs on the oval and will use the facilities.”
The modular changerooms will be built off-site to minimise disruption, with the project expected to be complete by August.
For the Wilmshursts, alongside club president Kris Winchester, it is the culmination of lots of hard work.
“We’ve been at the footy club forever and that’s true for most of the committee and volunteers,” says Mrs Wilmshurst, who was made a life member of the club in 2017. (She suspects her husband “won’t be far behind me, though.”)
“What’s funny in our club is that when someone comes up for life membership you realise basically we all met our spouse at the footy club.
“All the kids playing footy have a previous connection to the club through a parent or grandparent, and that’s true for the girls, too.”
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