Since first arriving in Inverell six years ago, Sonia Martin has been instrumental to the growth of AFL in the region.
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Her eldest son was quick to join the senior men’s competition, and Auskick catered to “the little ones”, but she soon noticed there was no junior section.
“We found like-minded people in other towns and the passion gradually grew,” Martin said.
Three years later, Martin helped establish a junior competition. Now, newly named as the AFL North West NSW president, she is keen to keep giving back to the sport she loves.
“It’s really exciting times for AFL in our region in the north west. It’s challenging, there’s lots of changes. The competition is growing and we’ve got an extra club on board this year,” she said.
“It’s challenging, it’s exciting and it’s just really great to get the opportunity to be part of a sport that is growing.”
Her passion far from faded, Martin is thrilled by the potential the sport provides to young people who find joy in it, pleased with the good sportsmanship displayed by many, and the willingness of clubs to get involved in the community.
”There’s some really great clubs in the north west that are very social and very supportive on and off the field. Inverell Saints raised tens of thousands for charity. They're doing great things in the community,” she said.
This year AFL North West is introducing a mixed gender under 14s competition, in which Glen Innes’ newest club will take part.
Martin is pleased to help kick off the newest addition, and is also keen to keep developing the women’s competition as more teams join.
“So really, (my goal) it’s to keep growing those new divisions of footy. And then I would like to see moving forward, develop a youth girls competition,” she said.
Her biggest challenge is working with a new governance structure, which includes a competition management committee. Although it is a learning process for all involved, Martin said the structure is becoming more professional in response to the sport’s growth in the area.
“That’s part of the challenge, is implementing that, and making sure the clubs are on board and understanding it.”
To help everyone involved get up to speed, AFL North West is hosting an education day in Tamworth on Sunday, February 17.
Martin says the day will expand upon previous years, and aims to provide opportunities for everyone involved in the sport, including coaches, umpires, administrators and volunteers.
“We’re not just looking at game day anymore. It’s a much broader picture,” she said. With pre season started in most clubs, Martin encouraged anyone interested to come along to training.
“(I’m) looking forward to driving things forward, looking forward to some really competitive football for the year,” she said.