Jimmy boosts girls’ team on hard times ahead of finals

Andrew Mathieson
Aspiring football girls from Matthew Flinders secondary college were out to emulate Cats champion Jimmy Bartel this week but it was their commitment that equally impressed the reigning Brownlow Medallist.
For the girls’ high school’s junior players, football includes training from February on a hard courtyard.
School coach Julie McNamara said it was a battle for the city students who had to beat a dozen other schools to the Geelong Secondary School Sports Association football titles.
“We have to train a lot longer because we just don’t have the grass here,” she said.
“When they get on an oval they go crazy with all the space.”
The girls were so hard up for a patch of grass to run on that yesterday they headed down to Johnstone Park – better known for Carols by Candlelight – to practice their tackling and shepherding.
“We try to get in there a couple of times a year at least,” Ms McNamara said.
“But we haven’t been able to play at (usual training ground) St Mary’s because of restrictions from the drought.”
The girls’ high school’s junior team met Bartel during a training session in preparation for their western-zone final this month after reaching the state’s final four.
Bartel was on hand to pass around some words of advice, including tips to avoid staying up late before a night game and to drink five litres of fluids the day before the match.
“The girls were a little amazed by that,” Ms McNamara said.