It has been a return to remember for the girls in black and white.
After not fielding a women’s side since 2019, Roxburgh Park have made up for lost time and qualified for a maiden preliminary final with the chance of facing off against Coburg Districts in the decider at Coburg City Oval next Saturday.
The journey to finals footy hasn’t been smooth sailing with plenty of challenges along the way that the team has needed to overcome.
Senior women’s coordinator Scott Prouse has been there every step of the way and has provided the club with the necessary stability to help them overcome the obstacles they’ve faced.
“Being a start-up team this year we have faced numerous challenges throughout the season," Prouse reflected. "It took three to four rounds at the start of the year for the girls to click as a team.
“You can do as much training as you wish, but actual match intensity and pressure from opposition in actual games is what the team needed to grow as a group.
“We had seven players in the last three rounds of the season travelling overseas, on top of girls injured or ill.
“We had plans in place knowing this was occurring, with this being driven by the girls themselves ensuring the team remained successful during this tough period having so many players not playing.”
Being a new side across the course of the preseason, the focus was on creating a strong culture that could run simultaneously with the men’s program and netball teams, as well as creating an environment for leaders to stand up and take charge.
The growth in these areas, however, needed to come from within the playing group and luckily for coach Kevin Allan, the girls seemed to have no problem in digging in and getting to work.
“The strong culture and club values at Roxburgh Park FNC is something that is driven within the whole club and incorporates everyone from the senior men's and women's football programs, our junior football program, and through to our women's netball program.
“We have amazing leadership within our club over all of these programs, and the culture is driven very strongly from all of our leaders.
“Our women drive this culture themselves within the team, it makes me proud that our team leaders do this, with our women's coach Kevin Allan driving this hard within the women's program.”
Having not played a senior game for four years, the girls needed a leader to stand up and take charge, as well as being a role model for the younger, more inexperienced girls to look up to.
Fortunately, the club was boosted by the return of Emily Prouse in the preseason as well as the recruitment of Megan Allan.
Both women had the huge task of leading out a team with minimal experience and driving the standards during training.
“It was evident early in preseason our women's team had some stand out girls who would be strong leaders within the group.
“(Emily Prouse) undertook a lot of work early in preseason last year behind the scenes in ensuring we would have a women's team at the club.
“She set a high standard at training from the first session and continues to set standards and expectations within the group now.
“From day one, Megan (Allan) was a standout as a leader, being a very obvious choice as a captain of the team.
“Megan has spent so many hours behind the scenes in recruiting players, working on training and drills, and dealing with girls and any issues within the team.
“Her leadership on the field is second to none, and the girls listen whenever she provides feedback or speaks to the group.”
Despite the challenges and the difficulties Roxburgh Park faced in its infancy, the Magpies have certainly experienced many highs and exceeded their own expectations.
Prouse reaffirmed that winning games in the short term isn’t the main priority, with enjoyment and connection standing out as the positive things he has seen from the girls in 2024.
“The best moment of the season is actually seeing the girls run out onto the field each week.
"We have had moments where our numbers have been low, with no bench due to injury, illness, and girls away overseas, however the group has never lost focus or the fun in actually playing together.
“It's fantastic to be successful, to win games and play finals, however the joy I get in the developing friendships I see in the group, women who get so much joy in playing the great game of AFL, girls from different backgrounds and diversities coming together, that's what makes it special for me, and I think that's what will make us successful and a point of difference with the female program at our club and within our community.
“The girls have been so proactive in getting new girls into the program, whether it is for one or two games to help, with the feedback from the new girls so positive and how much they have enjoyed it, and we may see them fully commit to play next season.”
In just their first year, the Roxburgh Park women have created a superb foundation that they can build upon for years to come.
Although winning hasn’t been the focus for the year, another victory on Saturday against the Lions would certainly be a moment to savour for the girls.
