Wednesday, 5 March 2025

Women’s sport

Georgie PURCELL (Northern Victoria) (18:49): (1485) My adjournment matter is for the Minister for Community Sport, and the action that I seek tonight is urgent. I call on the minister to order an independent audit of government women’s sports grants to ensure that every dollar is actually funding women’s sport. As part of this the minister must also report on how fair access policies meant to level the playing field for women’s sport are being enforced in practice, not just in policy. This is not just a bureaucratic issue, it is a test of integrity and fairness for the future of women’s sport in this state. In the town that I live in, the Kyneton women’s football team have had no choice but to walk away from their club after enduring years of systemic sexism. Despite their success on the field, with two grand finals and a premiership, they have faced consistent disrespect. Their change rooms were disrespected, their training times were secondary to the men’s team, they received abuse from club officials, Pride round signage was torn down, and the ultimate insult came when the club scheduled a fundraising event at the same time as their own grand final. The message to them was clear: they were invisible, they were not welcome and they did not matter.

This is systemic sexism in sport. When men’s clubs control funding and facilities for women’s teams, it is not just unfair, it is a failure of governance. This is not just about what is happening in Kyneton. Women’s sports grants are being misused to prop up men’s teams, with football clubs applying for grants intended for women’s sport and funnelling that funding back into men’s programs. This is fraud dressed up as equality, and this should be a moment of reckoning. What is happening with the Kyneton women’s football team is not just about football, it is about what happens when women demand a fair go, no matter where they are. We tell women to speak up, and then we punish them when they do it. We tell them to stand their ground, and then we rip it out from underneath them. We tell them to break barriers, but we keep moving the finish line. This is a story that is as old as time.

I ask the minister to assure this chamber that every dollar of government funding for women’s sport is going where it is supposed to and to guarantee that fair-access policies are being enforced so that women have the same access to local grounds as their male counterparts. This is not just about Kyneton, it is about every woman and every girl who steps onto a sporting field expecting fairness but receiving less. The fight for women’s sport is not just about funding or about fairness, it is about basic respect, and I ask the minister to show us if she will stand for it.