National accolade for special volunteer

Theresa Taylor (Shortt) with her son, Aengus Taylor who is an AFLW listed goal umpire.

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Theresa Taylor (Shortt) is a life member of her family’s junior club, Pennant Hills Demons, for her eight-plus years of volunteering running the club’s canteen. She devotes hours a week to cook for AFL Sydney’s umpiring groups at North Sydney, Blacktown and among the junior umpires. She is on the Sydney Umpiring Association Committee and is NSW/ACT’s delegate to a national working group dedicated to increasing the number of junior girls umpiring.

However impressive, none of these commitments are why Taylor claimed the 2024 AFL National Community Umpiring Service Award.

It is her revolutionary Umpire Welfare Officer concept which has made her stand out as this year’s exemplary volunteer in the umpiring scene across Australia.

“There’s never anyone cheering on the umpires,” Taylor said when asked about what sparked her idea. “I thought it’s time to look after them.”

Taylor visits local football grounds in Sydney, distributing high-vis vests with Umpire Welfare Officer printed on them so volunteers can wear them throughout local matches.

According to Taylor, the Umpire Welfare Officer’s role is to “be supportive of umpires and check at half time and the quarter time breaks that the umpires are feeling good and they’re not getting any grief from players or supporters.”

Over countless hours spent at grounds this year, Taylor has noticed an increased confidence in umpires when the high-vis vest is on display. It means they can focus on the game and any indiscretions can be reported to the day’s Ground Manager.

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Umpire Matchday Experience pilot

On top of her Umpire Welfare Officer initiative, Theresa Taylor is also part of the AFL’s Umpire Matchday Experience program.

In this role, Taylor has undertaken a mental health first aid course so she can help umpires through the aftermath of a poor match experience, which is usually brought on by threats or abuse.

Taylor will be assigned umpires who need support and she will track their progress throughout the season, ensuring they feel comfortable and confident to umpire.

This has meant a lot of extra weekend travel for Taylor as well as taking on the load of supporting affected umpires but it’s a role she does exceptionally well and has changed the trajectory for young umpires who have had a tough time on the field.

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Caring for the officials

Theresa Taylor clearly cares about umpires’ welfare and is deeply invested in their enjoyment of the pursuit.

She regularly puts in 10 hours on Sundays to ensure umpires are looked after across Sydney, whether in the Umpire Welfare Officer position or through the Umpire Matchday Experience program.

Her goal is for a high-vis vest to be at every ground – a modest request for the large impact. She’s started a conversation which has seldom been had, and it will improve the way football is officiated and how umpires are treated.

“I just want umpires to be treated better and to enjoy it, because I think it’s just great,” Taylor said. “I don’t think I would be strong enough to do it, but if the umpires have a good experience it can be so good for them. Their confidence levels increase and when they feel like they’re looked after, they shine brighter.”

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What’s next

For her 2024 AFL National Community Umpiring Service Award, Theresa Taylor wins flights and accommodation to the 2024 Toyota AFL Grand Final, where she will meet other winners of the Toyota AFL National Volunteer Awards.

The full list of state winners in 2024 are found here.

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More than 20,000 community umpires officiated matches throughout local leagues in 2024. Read more about the record here.

To learn more about getting involved in umpiring visit play.afl/umpire

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