By Justin Schwarze
Melbourne Storm’s Female Development Squad contained a strong local flavour when the exciting talent ran out for an intra-club practice match at Casey Fields on Sunday.
The match was held prior to Storm’s NRL team playing a preseason game against the North Queensland Cowboys.
Of the 30 girls involved in the program, six come from the Casey Warriors, putting their talent on full display in front of family and friends.
Florance Fuiono, Julliana Kolio, Ocean Kaiwai-Rangikauhata, Lorelai Cordtz, Justice Huriwai-Daymond and Eboni Heurea are all now wearing ‘purple’ after being selected from the Casey Warriors.
“We wanted to give our girls the opportunity to play in front of their friends and families at home,” Melbourne Storm’s Female Pathway Program Manager Pauline Poloai said.
“It gave the girls the opportunity to showcase their talent and also showcase the game of Rugby League in the Casey area.”
In the week prior, the girls had a training session in Hallam, where they were visited by Casey Mayor Stefan Koomen.
“Now that we’ve got our story and our footprint out there, it’s going to bring more awareness to the Melbourne Storm’s female programs and our pathways,” Poloai said.
“We wanted to broaden our horizon around providing Melbourne Storms fans the opportunity of seeing the pathways for females as we venture into the next phase of female sports on the trend.
“The girls were nervous; however it was such a great day for them.
“The smiles, the excitement we saw on their faces; they were nervous but at the end of the day it was really great to see how far they’ve come.”
Along with the club’s fans, the program and event hopes to reach even wider audiences.
Another major focus was growing participation and awareness of women’s sport overall.
“I hope to see this program continue, it’s going to be an exciting foundation for us, as well as the opportunities,” Poloai said.
