20 Jumpers in 20 days: #20
Congratulations to Pittwater Tigers Junior AFL club, who are the recipients of the first signed Sydney Swans jumper, after monumental participant growth this year.
The Tigers boasted the highest junior club growth in the Sydney Harbour/Illawarra region, with a 38% growth in player numbers, from 155 junior club players in 2013 to 214 in 2014.
The jumper will be the showpiece raffle item at the club’s annual family fun day, to be held on August 24th at the Narabeen AFL ground.
Pittwater, based on Sydney’s Northern Beaches, has seen a gradual increase in growth over the past decade, with the addition of a Youth Girls team central in this year’s spike in numbers.
The formation of a Youth Girls team has been on the cards at the club for several years, but the dream was realized under the mentorship of Peter Francis in 2014, with a host of girls, some as young as 12, carving out a very successful inaugural season, which looks set to include a finals berth.
With two Auskick age groups, two Under 9s, 10s, 14s, and 15s sides, and one team across the Under 11, 12, and 13 age groups, as well as the Youth Girls outfit, the Tigers’ overall team numbers have spiked from nine in 2013 to 12 this year, and President Mike Lay is hopeful the upward trend will continue.
“It’s really exciting to see the growth this year, and strong numbers across all age groups, especially considering the traditional issue we’ve had of finding enough older boys for older teams,” Lay said.
“There’s definitely an increased awareness of AFL on the Northern Beaches, and we are hoping to continue to increase participation numbers, with hopes for a second Youth Girls side next year.”
The success of the Tigers is all the more commendable considering the club was on its knees at one point, down to just a handful of members in the late 1970s, and by all accounts on the verge of folding.
Thankfully for its burgeoning participant base, the Tigers lived to fight another day, and they’re now one of the stand out junior AFL organisations in the region, according to Sydney North Development Coordinator Lou McKenry.
“Pittwater are always a pleasure to work with, they’ve got a great President, a very strong club committee, and they’re fantastic at integrating with the team at AFL NSW/ACT,” McKenry said.
“There’s a lot of quality coaches at the club, and they’re generally proactive, as evidenced by the formation of the ‘Come and try’ after school Auskick centre, which gives children a chance to try Auskick in a really friendly environment prior to the season proper starting.
“That’s a great initiative which has boosted their club Auskick numbers, and ensured Auskickers have remained engaged for longer.”
