Could you please introduce yourself and say a little about your team.
My name is Nicola Barr and I’ve just started playing women’s footy this year for Sydney Uni after two years in the Youth Girl’s league. Just from playing a few games with the team last year on permit, I can see how much passion everyone on the team has for AFL. The players’ enthusiasm for the game makes playing for Sydney Uni such a great experience and really encourages you to play to the best of your ability!
You are the defending premiers again this year. What were the highlights of the season in 2014 (apart from winning, of course)?
Having only played three games last year, those were the highlights of my season! The games were tough, but this makes it exciting and the move from Youth Girl’s to the Women’s league is a new challenge that I’m really enjoying, and I believe that it is helping me to improve my game.
Where can our readers see your team play this year? Is there an upcoming game?
Our first game is on April 18 at Sydney Uni Oval 1 and you can find our game fixture on Sports Pulse. We love having supporters at our game, it’s a great way to raise awareness of women’s footy as well as giving us some great support on the field!
What do you most enjoy about football? What impact does it have on your life in general?
The thing I enjoy most about women’s football is its diversity in terms of the skills you use for the game. It really is an all-body sport – tackling, kicking, hand-balling – which makes it such an accessible sport for women of all ages and sporting abilities. The support and camaraderie within the team is another aspect that I love. In no other sport that I’ve played is there the same need to work together in order to succeed.
Women’s AFL has a huge impact on my life as it makes me determined to succeed; firstly as an individual athlete and secondly in growing a new, exciting sport for women.
