By Molly Magennis
The second NAB AFL Women’s Competition official Pride Round will be held this weekend, celebrating diversity and inclusivity within the competition.
The occasion was marked in Melbourne by the AFL’s general manager of women’s football, Nicole Livingstone, who was joined by the Bulldogs’ Jess Fitzgerald and Carlton’s Darcy Vescio at VU Whitten Oval.
Livingstone said that the AFLW is proud to showcase Pride Round and give back to the community through awareness and recognition.
“Our players and fans have been celebrating Pride in sport for a long time, and we’re thrilled to use the round to represent the diversity and acceptance we see in the modern AFLW game.”
As part of the round, field and boundary umpires will wear rainbow-coloured sweatbands, while goal umpires will exchange their traditional white flags for rainbow ones.
The NAB AFLW competition logo will swap its coral coloured emblem for a rainbow one, and all 50-metre arc ground markings will also be painted rainbow.
Once again players will also be able to show their support, with thirteen AFLW Clubs wearing specially designed guernseys to mark the round.
Pride Round kicks off on January 21 with a clash between Geelong and Collingwood at GMHBA stadium.
