East Pilbara Football Carnival gives girls living in the region chance to play in a structured competition

There is an absence of a structured football competition for girls living in the East Pilbara but a new football carnival is trying to fill this gap. In its second year, the Junior East Pilbara Football Carnival took place on Wednesday with players from across the region going to Newman to take part. The boy’s competition featured teams from Newman, the Western Desert communities, and a combined team from Paraburdoo and Tom Price. As the girls’ competition lacked numbers for separate teams, players from the different regions were put into two combined teams. West Coast Eagles Newman community engagement coordinator Brendon Daily organised the tournament. He said that given there was no girls league for the East Pilbara, the tournament provided them with one of the only structured football competitions to show their skills. “In all the areas there isn’t a structured competition because with the low number of girls playing you can’t justify a competition,” he said. “For them to be able to come together today, they can show what they can do and that is great for them.” Several girls from Newman Senior High School took part in the tournament. Jade Muli works at the Stars Foundation at the school and helped bring the students to the tournament. She said the carnival was a fantastic opportunity for their students, many of whom had a large appetite for footy. “I think this is a great opportunity for our girls,” she said. “The carnival gives them more opportunity to play because sometimes they don’t get that and today I think we have about seven girls on the field. “They were all really looking forward to today.” The Stars Foundation provides in-class and mentor support for Aboriginal students at the high school and primary schools in Newman.