by Ben Gilby (29/4/24)
Above: Joy on the faces of all taking part in the Cairns coaching session hosted by the Junior Matildas today. Photo supplied to Impetus by: Football Australia.
The Junior Matildas welcomed 18 girls from Cape York House for Girls and Centacare Far North Queensland resettlement program to Endeavour Park in Cairns for a specially designed football clinic.
Australia’s Under-17 national side took time out from their preparations for the forthcoming U17 Asian Cup to teach new skills to young First Nation girls, and newly arrived youngsters from DR Congo and Bhutan.
Junior Matildas’ head coach Rae Dower outlined that the coaching clinic was designed and led by the players as part of the wider squad development of the ‘whole person’ around the footballer.
“It was a wonderful opportunity, the (Junior Matildas) players designed a little clinic, little training sessions…and all the young players – the smiles were incredibly large and they had a great time.
“It’s something that we always do wherever around the world we travel. They design and run some sort of a clinic for local children in that children, and it’s developed a lot of really great skills away from the game for the girls – understanding being young role models and young leaders.”
Young Western Australian Ruby Cuthbert, who made her A-League Women bow for Brisbane Roar this season emphasised how much the session working with the girls meant to her.
“It was a really amazing experience. “It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. We were speaking to some of the girls afterwards, and they said it was the best day of their life. It makes us proud and makes us feel that we belong somewhere because some of aren’t used to that. Some of them didn’t speak English. If we can speak to them in a language through football, it’s an amazing thing.”
“For me, looking up to someone older than myself would have been amazing, so giving that opportunity to those girls, I think it just warms my heart and makes myself proud to be a role model to these girls.”
Cuthbert values the emphasis that the Junior Matildas set up has on developing young women’s life skills as well as developing their footballing skills on the international scene. The Fremantle-born defender said: “We are just so privileged and it opens us up and our minds up to what is out there in the world.
“Being so privileged in what we have, it makes us learn new skills, learn how to coach. No words can describe how amazing this opportunity was for us.”
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