The rebel Female Football awards will be held on Friday, recognising the incredible contribution by both women and men in football at all levels of the game in Australia.
As well as highlighting work done by women at both Westfield W-League and Hyundai A-League clubs, it also shines a light on the unique stories and volunteers at Member Federation and grassroots level.
The awards are held in categories including Female Player of the Year, Female Coach of the Year, Female Administrator of the Year, Female Referee of the Year and Male Champion of the Year.
And today we’re looking at the nominees from Football Queensland.
Female Coach of the Year – Corinna Ryan
In 2016/2017, Corinna Ryan became a life member of Capricorn Coast FC for her commitment to the club. Becoming a life member highlights the impact and contributions she has made at all levels across the club and this is all on a voluntary basis. As a coach of a 2nd divisional men’s team, Corinna is well respected and continues to break down barriers and stigmas associated to women in football.
Corinna is a mentor for coaches within Capricorn Coast FC and is well known within the Central Qld zone. She is a keen developer of Women’s football and encourages collaboration between teams. Corinna was also instrumental in the successful running of MiniRoos Kick Off Programs at the club which continue to grow year upon year.
Female Administrator of the Year – Sarah Dixon
Sarah is one of the key volunteers that drives and sustains Albany Creek Excelsior. As the secretary she is the number one contact for all club members and with a club of over 1,000 members. In addition to her role as secretary she is the backbone behind nearly all of the clubs events including Carnivals, Muster Days, Sign On Days, Pre-Season Games, Holiday Clinics, Junior Grading, Hosting Junior Finals & Presentation Days.
Female Referee of the Year – Ashleigh McNamara
Ashleigh is a young lady who has performed at a very high standard and has been on the NPL panel for 3 years. In her time on the panel Ashleigh has refereed the NPLW semi finals on two separate occasions. She was also invited to referee at the U19 State Schoolboys/Schoolgirls Championship in Brisbane in 2019.
She continues to referee in the TFL competition – Making her men’s premier debut as a referee early in the season and as a female referee, it’s a lot harder to gain the respect of male players. Combining both work, study and refereeing, this young referee can make it all the way.
Male Champion of the Year – David Bounds
David is the coach who lifted Bardon La Trobe’s mid-ladder under 13 division 2 team to Under 14 Division 1 female premiership. The team was undefeated in 2019 regular season. David has championed the involvement of girls in football and increased retention of girls at the club.
David volunteered to coach twice per week from second half of 2018 season, right through the off season, until the end of the 2019 season, despite not having a daughter in the team. The girls made tremendous gains in skills. He has also developed a sense of camaraderie and pride in the team and the jersey.
