The days of the large number of female players at Stingrays RLFC having to share a single changing room with their male counterparts are almost over.
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Stingrays seniors president Matt Poort confirmed work to upgrade the club's facilities will start in September after the club was included in the NSW government's 'Level the Playing Field' program which will invest nearly $6 million to women's sport in the Illawarra.
The Stingrays have long called for more female-friendly facilities for some time and now it will soon be a reality given that its facilities at Flinders Oval will receive $1,857,250 to build a new female-friendly amenities building for players and referees.
The good news comes as the Rays get set to participate in the inaugural Group Seven rugby league Open Women's Tackle competition starting on June 1.
Poort was ecstatic, as was club secretary Donna Singleton, who stated women at the club had been crying out for better facilities for a long time.
"It's imperative we have facilities specifically for our female players. I'm so happy that will soon be the case," she said.
The Shellharbour club has submitted a development application to Shellharbour City Council for a new amenities building containing changing rooms, toilets, an officials room and space to store equipment.
The current building at Flinders Reserve contained only an open changing room with a bench seat and a couple of open showers.
"The growth of female sport, particularly in rugby league, has been massive. We've seen it here at our club," Poort said.
"It's important that we address any shortcomings we have in terms of facilities we have in place for our female players.
"That's what we are trying to do with the development application we've submitted to council.
"The upgrade to our facilities are vital to ensure we're looking after all our players.
"In recent years we've had not only older girls start playing for our club, the amount of juniors coming through is unbelievable. Long may it continue.
"We need though to have facilities in place to cater for this growth."
Agron Latifi
Wollongong born and bred. I love reporting about the Illawarra region and have been doing it for more than 20 years. I've moved into sport recently after covering the education round for the last five plus years for the Illawarra Mercury. It's been a great pleasure.
Wollongong born and bred. I love reporting about the Illawarra region and have been doing it for more than 20 years. I've moved into sport recently after covering the education round for the last five plus years for the Illawarra Mercury. It's been a great pleasure.
