Barrier Miner (Broken Hill, NSW : 1888 - 1954), Saturday 29 July 1933, page 6


FIRST FOOTBALL LESSON

For 40 Melbourne Girls

Spiral Punts, Long Kicks, Marks

Attract Men Spectators

Any fashions were football fashions on the Carlton Oval last Saturday, when more than 40 girls handled the ball for the first time, under the ex-pert guidance of League players such as Jim Park, Frank Gill, and Alf-Egan.

Some had borrowed football guern-seys from brothers; thc majority wore white shorts, later sullied through con-tact, with the greasy ground: a few

favored dresses with flared skirts.

But those who had managed to pro-cure strong boots for the practice had a decided advantage over thc girls who had thought thin sandshoes would be sufficient protection for a ladylike game of football.

With such fast runners as Mrs Crockett, who before her marriage was Miss Emily Brooks, Australian 100 yards champion, and basketball

players who markerd with precision and leapt up to the ball with, judg-ment, thc practice developed into a dashing game of football.

It spoke well for thc match between thc Carlton and Richmond women's teams to he held on August 12, in con-nection with the Carlton Queen Car-

nival.

Although the players were girls, all the spectators gathered around the "onces were men. They were appre-ciative of spiral punts in the Harry Vallence style, long straight kicks at goal, and high marks.

The players, ranging from a tall, fair girl of 5ft. 10in. or more, to a little 15-year-old lass with short, dark curls, were in excellent training, and although the practice was timed to stop at 10 a.m., their enthusiasm kept it going for another half hour.