By Steve Fleming
On a glorious Saturday morning, Lamartine da Silva from the Hope Australia Soccer Academy and Rob Prins from the Victorian Churches Football Association (VCFA) ventured into the Yarra Valley to conduct a skills clinic for females of all ages.
They were hosted by the Healesville Soccer Club at the Don Road Sporting Complex, and players from Healesville SC and Yarra Valley Soccer Club (YVSC) attended.
“It’s about helping women develop and reach their potential, finding that extra skill set that they might not otherwise have tapped into,” Rob Prins said about the motivation for the clinic.
Lamartine, who has extensive coaching experience with international youth teams like Thailand and has played professionally for Portugesa FC in Brazil, is passionate about what he does.
“What drives me is creating dreams for young players. In Brazil, soccer is like a national religion, here there is so much competition for that dream from AFL, basketball and cricket,” he said.
“To help foster that dream, there must be investment in infrastructure and in the development of young players. That is why we are working with the young women today.”
Naomi Hauysmann, who coaches junior girls at Healesville SC, said it was interesting to watch on from a coaching perspective.
“It was interesting seeing the focus on agility training and how important that is in the skill development equation,” she said.
Michaela Langmaid, who plays for YVSC and is on the VCFA Women’s Committee was impressed by the high work rate.
“Seeing how professionals train will help us bring a bit more intensity to our own training. The progression from warm-up through to speed and agility training, drills and then gameplay is something we already do, but our approach will probably be a bit more focused now,” she said.
The clinic was one aspect of a strategic shift at the VCFA to encourage girls and women to take up soccer. Another aspect is the inclusion of a girls U16 competition in 2022.
The Women’s Season Launch will kick-off on 2 April where Maroondah United SC will host the round at Silcock Reserve in Croydon. The round is devoted entirely to the female teams from U8’s to Senior Women’s and promises to be a festive and celebratory day.
