New Football Club for Girls Panmure, Auckland

Caryn Wilkinson Reporter from Community News

A new sports club for girls is turning heads in Panmure, Auckland.

Football coach Haley Gleeson said The Football Girls was entering its third week "and the reviews are just fantastic."

The Mt Wellington resident launched the program at Uni Bohemian Club for players aged 5 to 12 years old, some newcomers to the sport.

Helping to train the youngsters are a few 16-year-old girls whom she coached in the past.

"They are wanting to become New Zealand players one day so (it's) great to have them role modelling."

Gleeson said the New Zealand under 17 girls would be signing autographs and starting a mentorship program with the players once Auckland had dropped back to alert level 2.

Naturopath Annaliese Jones would speak to parents about supporting their children through nutrition and pre-puberty.

"A big emphasis on my program is around good mental health.... learning skills to self-regulate," said Gleeson.

Trish Du Temple, who has studied mindfulness in sport, will teach the girls about preparation and stress.

Gleeson said New Zealand was losing its children to suicide, Kiwis tried their best but had to stop being the ambulance at the bottom of the cliff.

"We need to help them earlier feel a part of something," she said.

"I hope this is the program that can save some lives and make kids feel less alone."

Gleeson said everyone developed in their own time and she wanted to validate and appreciate that in each individual.

"The pressure to compare is a lot and we take that away," she said.

"We want the girls to remember, 'be more you.' We teach girls to learn leadership, show up, ...when its tough, strong back - soft front. "

Natalie Lawerence, NZ Football Ferns Programme and NZ under 20s assistant, said New Zealand had a unique opportunity right now to inspire and retain females in the sport.

"... knowing they will be watching their favourite Football Ferns at a home world cup is a once in a lifetime opportunity to see their role models in action," she said.

"Programmes like The Football Girls are really important to help create a level of excitement for our girls who love playing football."

Go to: Hello@thefootballgirls.co.nz for more information.