A fantastic turnout saw 18 players take to the field at Varley Oval for a hard fought encounter. No quarter was asked for, and none given, as both teams ripped in to play an enterprising and exciting brand of footy where strong tackles, big kicks, and athletic ability were all on show.

"I've played club footy with the boys, but this was my first match of girls footy and I enjoyed it so much more," one enthusiastic participant said.

"This was my first ever game of AFL, and I just loved the tackling and the space to move with the ball," another stated.

The Mini Series has been designed to introduce new and existing players to Youth Girls AFL, and to grow the participant base ahead of a club competition set to begin later this year.

This is a great chance for girls to join in with the fastest growing female sport in the country and progress through to the highly successful AFL North West Women's competition and beyond.

Matt Crawley, AFL NSW/ACT Development Lead, said it was really exciting to see how much the girls had enjoyed the match.

"Some of the girls have never been involved in a tackle sport before but they all loved the feeling of laying a tackle, and of being tackled," Crawley said.

"This was instantly obvious when we took a break between quarters and when the match finished as the girls walked off the field with huge smiles each time.

"When we ran a quick skills session before the match started to help out the girls who'd never played before, and you could see those skills improving with every touch of the footy."

The remaining two matches in the Youth Girls Mini Series will be held in Gunnedah on Saturday, June 4, from 10.45am, and in Armidale on Sunday, June 19, from 11:45am. These events will include skill development sessions and are open to any new or current player aged between 14 and 17.

For more information, or to express an interest in getting involved, please contact Matt Crawley via matthew.crawley@afl.com.au or on 0431 877 173.

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