Why sporting supermum says football is missing out on “untapped potential’

She’s breaking barriers in her sport. Now, this talented player and coach wants to inspire Indigenous kids to think outside the rugby league square.

This local indigenous woman is coaching and playing football in Hervey Bay, on a mission to break barriers within the sport.

This local Indigenous woman and mother of three, took up football to conquer challenges much greater than anyone would realise.

Teacher and Hervey Bay United Warriors coach Renee Crilly, 42, is breaking barriers within football, urging women and other Indigenous people to play.

Growing up in Eidsvold, a small town west of Childers, Renee said “there was only rugby league or netball” as sports to choose from.

Rosie Crilly, Phoebe Sexton, Kanisha Green, and Renee Crilly are Indigenous football players in the Fraser Coast region.

And, shortly after moving up to Hervey Bay in 2007, she pursued playing and coaching football to change the game.

“I wanted to get involved in the sport, I’m very community-minded, giving back to the community is something that my husband and I have both been brought up with,” Renee told the Chronicle.

“As my daughter got involved in sports, my husband and I started to too, I actually started to coach football in that time because we had two children and I wanted to make sure that they had an opportunity to develop their skills.

“We don’t have a lot of Indigenous people that play football in comparison to other sports, like Rugby League, or AFL.”

Renee Crilly is a descendant of the Wulli Wulli people with strong connections to the Wakka Wakka people.

Knowing only a few other Indigenous players outside of her family, Renee said the “very minimal” amount of Indigenous people who played, show an “untapped market” in the sport.

“I think it’s actually a big untapped market ... How do we get to those grassroots for our kids to actually think: ‘This could be a pathway for me in sport’?” Renee said.

“I would like to hope that I encourage other Indigenous people to think about playing sports outside of just what they are used to playing.

“We‘re really excited to unite in rugby league, or even in AFL, where they have an Indigenous round, my aspiration is, one day, we have an Indigenous round in football for our young people ... that shows our people that you value our culture, as well.”