Gold Coast Suns Academy manager will leave a lasting legacy in Townsville

Kath Newman’s passion has ignited the AFL dreams of countless young women in the heart of rugby league country. Read how she shaped the sport in Queensland.

kath newman

In the middle of rugby league heartland, Kath Newman is changing the lives of young athletes chasing their Aussie rules dream.

The Suns AFL Academy manager helped develop the code in Townsville before a shift to the Gold Coast where she is making an impact on the entire state of Queensland.

Ahead of International Women’s Day, Newman took the time to reflect on her journey in the sport.

“Looking back, I think it is the start of the women’s competition in Townsville (that would be my biggest achievement),” Newman said.

“It grew from nothing to then getting three girls drafted within the space of a couple of years.

“Its continuing to grow and I look back as a legacy and am really, really proud of.”

Townsville’s Aussie rules league, like many competitions in the early 2010s, didn’t have a women’s competition.

Gold Coast Suns Academy Manager Kath Newman. Picture: Somha Sleeth

Newman and her family relocated from Melbourne to Townsville shortly before the Suns academy landed in North Queensland.

“I was teaching in those days, the academy needed a training base and my school had a brand new gym,” Newman said.

“I was a strength and conditioning coach so I don’t know if they wanted me because of that or my gym.

“But we came as sort of a package deal, so I started at the Suns in 2010/2011.”

In 2013, Newman had become a regional manager for the Suns in Townsville.

“Could just be a coincidence but in the space of a week we had three women ring our office and ask how they can get involved in footy,” Newman said.

“My development manager and I just looked at each other and said why not? that's three calls in one week, lets give it a crack.

“We started with a come and try program then a six week competition in the same year.

“Then in three years time AFL Townsville was running the whole show.

“Girls were playing on the main stadium and now it has grown to have six teams in the competition.

“They now have under-17s and under-14s starting this year.”

Since the growth and development of the game in North Queensland, some big named players have been drafted to the AFLW.

The Suns recruited Lauren Bella, Daisy D’Arcy, Wallis Randell while the Lions drafted Ellie Hampson, Bre Koenen.

“There have been heaps and even Lily Tarlinton is a great story, she has come from Mackay,” Newman said.

“She is now just turning 23 but she has been playing for Bond University.

“All of sudden at the end of last year she gets drafted to Adelaide.

“Some really good stories out of North Queensland.”

Born in Toowoomba, Newman grew up playing basketball and athletics but her passion for AFL came during her years as a physical education teacher.

“I would love to have the opportunity (to get drafted),” Newman said.

“I was one of those basketballers that spent a lot of time with five fouls sitting and cheering on the rest of my team for the second half of the game.

“(I was) quite physical and yeah I would have loved to have an opportunity to play footy.

“The girls these days, they don’t really know how lucky they got it.”

The content summaries were created with the assistance of AI technology then edited and approved for publication by an editor.

Originally published as Gold Coast Suns Academy manager will leave a lasting legacy in Townsville