Women’s football in Melbourne is set for a massive boost after it was announced that their title-winning W-League side will play opener for the Melbourne Derby on October 25th.
With interest in the cross-town clash at an all time high – with the rebranded Melbourne City making massive waves across Australia – the decision looms as a massive step towards introducing women’s football to the masses, with a bumper crowd expected to pack into Etihad Stadium.
CEO of Etihad Stadium Paul Sergeant was on hand to announce the fixture, with the Victory facing up against Canberra United in the marquee W-League clash.
“We’ve got the Melbourne Derby, which is going to be a huge occasion – but prior to that we’ve got a game which is equally as big which is the ladies team of Melbourne Victory against Canberra United,” Sergeant said.
“Ladies football in this country has come a long way. The quality of football is fantastic and we encourage people to come down to the game [and] get behind Melbourne Victory Women’s.”
Victory Women’s shot stopper Brianna Davey was delighted with the decision, hoping that the exposure will help fuel the growth of the women’s game in the country.
“It’s one thing to get the league up and going but to play the double header ahead of the men is awesome and hopefully it’ll help the league grow and help women’s football grow,” Davey said.
“We’ve had a couple of double headers before where we’ve played before the men but every time we get the chance to do that, it’s a big thing for women’s football. It gets us a bit more recognised and some of the men’s fans end up coming along to our game.
“It’s just a matter of getting recognition and getting the chance to play in front of the men will just help it grow. Hopefully even get more girls are inspired to try and make their dream of becoming a professional footballer [come true].”
Her sentiments were echoed by Victory centre-half Adrian Leijer, who again stressed the importance of the matches in bringing through the younger crowd.
“It’s fantastic for the girls to get the opportunity to play before the men. The women’s football in this country has obviously come along way and it continues too,” Leijer added.
“A lot of our fans are families, a lot of young boys and girls in the crowd and for them to come down early and watch their heroes, both men and women’s, is fantastic.”
The W-League, A-League double header will take place at Etihad Stadium on the 25th of October, with the Melbourne Derby scheduled for a 7:30pm kick-off.