Darebin Falcons
Encyclopedia
Australian rules football
Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...
teams competing in the Victorian Women's Football League
Victorian Women's Football League
The Victorian Women's Football League is the oldest and largest Australian rules football league for women in the world, consisting of 22 clubs and 30 teams from Victoria, Australia across four divisions and a total of over 1,000 players....
- a team in Division One and a team in Division One Reserves. On 23 August 2009 the Falcons won a record breaking 4th consecutive VWFL Premiership.
The beginning
In 1990, a small group of women in Northcote wondered what it would be like to play Australian Rules football. Upon contacting the Victorian Women's Football League (VWFL), it was discovered that the Fairfield Falcons were looking like folding after three seasons in the competition. There was only one player from the team who wanted to continue playing with the Falcons. Other players had decided to transfer to other clubs or hang up their boots.News travelled fast - there was a women's football team being re-established at Fairfield Park and the number of women wanting to play football grew to over 30. Only a handful of women had played football at high school, some had played kick to kick with their brothers and others had never touched a football before. The one thing they had in common was that they all loved football and wanted to give it a try.
After a season of developing skills and confidence on the field and club and team spirit off the ground, it was decided the Falcons would move from Fairfield Park and relocate to Northcote. A new home ground was found in McDonell Park. Northcote City Council (now City of Darebin
City of Darebin
The City of Darebin is a Local Government Area in Victoria, Australia, located in the northern suburbs of Melbourne. It has an area of , and as of 2009, has a population of 139,608...
) had set aside McDonell Park as a women's sporting ground. In 1991 it became the home ground to the Fairfield Falcons Women's Football Club.
The early years
During the Falcon's first six seasons, the club worked hard to establish themselves to be a consistent presence in the VWFL competition. The teams on field performances improved with each season. Although the Falcons had only appeared in one semi final, membership was growing and the social environment that exists in successful sporting clubs had become an important aspect of the club.In 2000, the Fairfield Falcons Women's Football Club changed their name to the Darebin Women's Sports Club. The name change was a result of the club wanting to branch out and provide various sports to its members and the Falcons wanted their name to truly indicate their location.
VWFLPremiers
The season of 1996 is one Darebin will never forget. The recruitment of experienced players and the commitment of the team resulted in the Falcons winning important games throughout the season, which consolidated their position on the VWFL ladder.The Falcons won every game in the second half of the season and secured first position on the ladder. The team convincingly won the semi final against the St Kilda Sharks and in the following week the Falcons appeared in their first grand final.
The Sunshine Spurs took early control of the game and even though Fairfield were six goals behind at half time, the Falcon's loyal supporters inspired a determination in the team that had never before been witnessed at the club. The Falcons won the grand final by 13 points.
2002 saw the club again expand with the inclusion of a second Australian football team, now providing opportunity for more women to participate.
2005 saw the Falcons make the Grandfinal for the Premier Division, eventually going down to Melbourne University. However, this game set them up for the grandfinal in 2006, where the Falcons again played Melbourne University. This time the Falcons would come out winners, with the Premier Reserves team going down to St Kilda in their final.
2007 was the most successful season for the club, with both the Premier Division and Premier Reserves both going through the season undefeated. Both teams capped off great seasons with convincing wins in their respective grand finals.
2008 was another successful year with both the Premier Division and Premier Reserve teams making the grand final. The Reserves were runners up, while the Premier Division team won their 3rd flag in succession.
2009 once again another successful year with both the Premier Division and Premier Reserve teams winning the flag.
The success of the Darebin Women's Sports Club has been possible because of a strong commitment from players, club members and supporters - all of whom have a passion for women's sport. Another factor that has enabled the growth and success of the club, is the continued assistance extended from the City of Darebin
City of Darebin
The City of Darebin is a Local Government Area in Victoria, Australia, located in the northern suburbs of Melbourne. It has an area of , and as of 2009, has a population of 139,608...
and club sponsors. This commitment and the support for women's sport is unique and will enable the Darebin Falcons to continue to grow as a women's sporting club.
Darebin Women's Sports Club has over 130 registered playing members and another 30 registered as volunteers and social members of the club.
The Darebin Falcons have one Soccer team competing in the Football Federation Victoria
Football Federation Victoria
Football Federation Victoria is the state governing body for football in Victoria, Australia. It is affiliated with Football Federation Australia, the sport's national governing body....
Women's State League Div 2 North West.
The Darebin Falcons have one Cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
team competing in the Cricket Victoria
Cricket Victoria
Cricket Victoria is the governing body for the sport of cricket in Victoria. It was formed on 29 September 1875 as the Victorian Cricket Association...
women's league.
The Darebin Falcons have one Eightball team (the Darebin Devils) who competed successfully again in 2008.
More recently the Falcons featured on the AFL documentary "The Essence of the game." This documentary showed the inner workings of the club and coach, Peta Searle addressing the 2008 AFL national draftees.
