General Updates
New Updates
GFNL ROUND 1
Senior Football & A Grade Netball
12/4/25 - St Albans vs. Lara
BFNL ROUND 2
Senior Football
5/4/25 - Geelong Amateur vs. Anglesea
A Grade Netball
5/4/25 - Drysdale vs. Modewarre
We have attached posts for you to share below on your social media for the live streamed matches. AFL Barwon may also add you as a collaborator to our posts if your club is featured.
Please contact
Please contact
Week 19th May to 25th May – AFL Barwon Indigenous Round
Week 9th June to 15th June – Inclusion / Pride Round
Week 30th June to 6th July – Female Festival of Sport
Week 28th July to 3rd August – Mental Health & Read the Play Round
Local Media
Football
Senior Football
Having endured and survived another “pre-round one” mad scramble, I believe it is timely to reiterate and note some issues of importance to ensure the next few weeks proceed smoothly without inflicting excessive stress on all concerned.
Michael Limb
PLAYER REGISTRATIONS & POINTS
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All players must be registered by the Tuesday before their first game to be eligible for senior selection.
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PPVs (Player Points Values) cannot be assigned or updated until the player is registered.
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Team lists are now updated weekly.
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All players, including Reserves and below, must be registered for the 2025 season before taking the field.
DUPLICATE PLAYER ACCOUNTS
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Many former U18s are creating new accounts, losing their playing history.
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Players should be registered under their existing account, with the email updated if needed.
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Merging accounts requires written approval from the primary account holder.
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Altering names or DOBs to avoid transfers or hide playing history is a serious breach — significant penalties apply.
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Flag any incorrect registrations or suspicious PPVs immediately to avoid policy breaches.
TEAM SELECTION & PPVs
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Players without PPVs cannot play Senior football.
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If a coach plans to select a player without a PPV (e.g. U18 or Reserves), the Football Manager must be notified by Tuesday.
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Late requests will not always be accommodated — last-minute approvals are not guaranteed.
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Clubs must ensure clear communication and timely submissions.
PPV REASSESSMENTS
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Most recent requests have been denied due to not meeting criteria outlined in the PPSP By Laws.
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Requests based on emotion or general appeals will not be considered.
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Applications must include the player’s standard declaration.
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If a player is paid in excess of $200 per match, their application will not be considered.
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Applications are reviewed each Wednesday — submissions after 9am will be deferred to the following week.
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Once a player has played Seniors for a club, no reduction will be considered.
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Retrospective reassessments will not be accepted (2.1.3).
COACHES
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Coaches must reaccredit annually.
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When reaccrediting, they must nominate your club to appear on team sheets.
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Simply registering as a coach/volunteer won’t enable access to team sheets.
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Renewals must be completed via their Coach AFL account.
Hello to all Female Footy Clubs,
Firstly, WE MADE IT! Thank you to all club Presidents and Coordinators for the amount of work you have done at club level and also supporting myself to get us to the start of the season.
It is going to be an exciting season ahead for Female Football, with the change of day of play sure to bring a different element to game day and help towards building stronger club cultures and inclusiveness for all female players.
Thank you for the collaboration we have all had and also through the President and Coordinator group to ensure we have worked together to get the best outcomes for all teams.
Wishing you all the very best for kick off this weekend and hope to see some of you around at games in the coming weeks. Go the girls!
Lisa Patterson
Reminder that CDFNL's Game times have been changed to begin at 8.45 a.m. on Saturday and stretch out each game start time as follows.
Under 12’s 8.45am
Under 15’s 9.50am
Under 18’s 11.10am
Reserves 12.40pm
Seniors 2.15pm
Marsh Insurance - Pre-Match Checklist
Please refer to Simon's email for information on E-Scoring & White Card Policy.
Below is the link for 2025 GFNL Coaches Player of the year
Match day team managers please Note below post-match process:
- Both Team Managers must go to the Umpires’ Rooms after the match to receive the “all clear”. I.e. confirm any reports or video review requests and collect relevant copies of any reports.
- Home Team Manager to collect, footballs and all match day paperwork from the umpires.
- Away Team Manager to provide the home team manager with their best players and goalkickers.
- Home Team Manager to enter Match Results, Best Players, and Goalkickers into PlayHQ.
- No change to the post-match day process for match day team managers from 2024.
The 2025 AFL Barwon Handbook is currently being prepared and will soon be available on the AFL Barwon website limited hard copies will be available to all clubs.
Best of luck to all clubs in 2025 and beyond.
If any assistance is required, please feel free to reach out to the AFL Barwon football operations team to support you and your club.
Talk Soon,
Simon Riddoch
Below is the link for 2025 BFNL Coaches Player of the year
Match day team managers please Note below post-match process:
- Both Team Managers must go to the Umpires’ Rooms after the match to receive the “all clear”. I.e. confirm any reports or video review requests and collect relevant copies of any reports.
- Home Team Manager to collect, footballs and all match day paperwork from the umpires.
- Away Team Manager to provide the home team manager with their best players and goalkickers.
- Home Team Manager to enter Match Results, Best Players, and Goalkickers into PlayHQ.
- No change to the post-match day process for match day team managers from 2024.
The 2025 AFL Barwon Handbook is currently being prepared and will soon be available on the AFL Barwon website limited hard copies will be available to all clubs.
Best of luck to all clubs in 2025 and beyond.
If any assistance is required, please feel free to reach out to the AFL Barwon football operations team to support you and your club.
Talk Soon,
Simon Riddoch
The Last Possession Rule has been removed from reserve grade football, reach out to Jock Hillgrove (
U18 Colts grading games (x4) start 26th April 2025.
U18 Comp Rule Change - Clubs have been asked for feedback COMP RULE 23 Under 18s Competitions
Division one U18 Colts is deemed to be an “18 a side competition” with a maximum of 23 players and a minimum of 14 players.
All Lower U18 Colts Graded Competitions are deemed to be a “16 a side competition” with a maximum of 23 players and a minimum of 14 players.
More info - contact
Junior Football
Hi Junior Male and Female Coordinators,
Myself and William Ross would like to provide some updates to you in relation to junior football for 2025.
Match Day Paperwork
Paperwork is now available to collect from AFL Barwon offices which will be found in club pigeon holes. Please note that paper work which is supplied with vote cards and envelopes is for competitive teams and scorecards only are for non-competitive teams.
Please note: Paper work is there as a back up, it is preferred this is completed online, however recognise this may not be able to occur at times.
Football Collection
Footballs for both Junior Male and Female teams U16 age groups and below are now available for collection at AFL Barwon offices.
Fixturing
We appreciate everyone is excited for the season to start and the anticipation to see what the divisions etc are like. As you can appreciate this is a mammoth task in the junior space ensuring we fixture over 400 teams.
To ensure we do this to our best of our ability especially through this grading phase, we ask for your patience as we work through team requests for placings as well as working with the grading committees to ensure we are grading teams in the relevant divisions.
Based on this, fixtures will be released as soon as we can, however we please ask for your patience as we navigate through this mammoth task.
Communication
A friendly reminder that all communication through to AFL Barwon Coordinators, Junior Male, Will Ross and Female Football, Lisa Patterson, are only to be contacted by Club Coordinators or Presidents.
AFL Barwon are sending a small reminder about the correct process in making contact with coordinators and staff moving into the 2025 season.
Victorian Container Deposit Scheme
When clubs come to collect their footballs, please pay attention to the bags that you may have received. We highly encourage you to utilise the QR code on this bag to sign up to the Victorian Container deposit Scheme which can be a small money maker back into your clubs. It is a fantastic incentive and we highly encourage you to jump on board this initiative.
As further competitions kick off this weekend, AFL Barwon are wishing your club all the best moving into the start of the season, which I am sure there are a lot of people excited to have football back for another year.
Kind Regards,
Lisa Patterson
School Holidays Sorted: Looking for fun, active and engaging ways to keep your child entertained these holidays?
- Inclusive for all
- Play, laugh and make lifelong friends
- Off screens and into the outdoors
- Stay on top of your schedule and get them outside
- Hone their skills: refine their skills to support their footy journey
All-Abilities Football
There will be an All-Abilities fixture & general catch-up meeting Thursday 24th April 2025 at 5pm @ AFL Barwon office (Highton Reserve).
If any clubs with to catch up prior to this date, please reach out.
Simon Riddoch
Resource Links
Football Umpiring
Netball
Senior Netball
ATT: Netball Coordinators & Administrators
With Bellarine having kicked off last week, and the remainder of the GFNL commencing this week, please be reminded of scoring processes!
Position Tracking and Scoresheets
- ALL PLAYERS must be listed on both of these documents before the game commences. These lists MUST be the same.
- Players cannot be added after the commencement of play to EITHER document.
- FIRST QUARTER STARTING POSITIONS ONLY on scoresheet
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- ALL POSITIONS including changes, recorded on position tracking sheets
- This includes goaler chnages being notated on scoresheets via a bracket in the GS/GA boxes.
Failure to complete these documents correctly may lead to loss of premiership points, goals scored AND/OR monetary fines.
Please be reminded of the statewide ‘If they’re wearing green, they’re under 18’ umpiring initiative!
Our underage umpires will be out in force with both leagues commencing this weekend, and while NO umpire deserves to be abused or disrespected – there is absolutely no place in our competitions for disrespect of our underage umpires.
Don’t be a by-stander if this occurs – please stand up and support our umpires, and advise AFL Barwon of any instances whereby this occurs.
Following on from the successes of last year, we are excited to announce that we have continued the Coaches Player of the Year award for both A-Grade Netball Competitions in 2025. This year’s awards is supported by our new commercial partner, P&R Food Services.
How does the award work?
Each participating A-Grade Coach is to select the 3 best players on the court from both A-Grade teams (3 = Best). Therefore, you may select 3 of your own players, 3 opposition players, or a mix of 3 players from the two teams.
It is the responsibility of each A-Grade Coach to update the Coaches Player of the Year Award via the following link NO later than 9.30 am the following Tuesday of the match.
Votes should be entered via the link emailed directly to presidents and coaches.
Votes will be published on the AFL Barwon website frequently with the running tally of the vote leaders.
Key findings from Round 1:
- When completing data entry, please ensure:
- You are removing players who DID NOT take the court (as per position tracking sheet)
- You are adding any handwritten players who took the court to the line-up.
- Player Positions MUST be entered for A Grade into PlayHQ.
- If there is a dispute – do not sign the scoresheet, and advise AFL Barwon of your intent to protest within 48 hours.
- Paperwork must be into AFL Barwon by 10am Monday (BFNL/GFNL).
- PLEASE do not fold the paperwork – this makes it extremely difficult for us to scan!
- (BFNL/GFNL ONLY) Please ensure the Scorers Match Management Log is available with scoresheets for each game, in addition to the Umpires Match Report for all grades C Grade and below (panel umpires will do this electronically).
With round one finally here, please see some key items to be ticked off:
- Team Selection: completed by Thursday evening – up to 12 may be selected (minimum of 9 for A Grade).
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- FOR A GRADE - PLEASE ALSO SELECT STARTING POSITIONS TO ASSIST WITH E-SCORING
- Printing of Scoresheets: AFTER 10am Friday to allow for late changes.
- Player Names: MUST be listed on both scoresheet and position tracking sheets.
- Game Balls: AFL Barwon branded match balls must be used.
- League Votes: MUST be completed by umpires for every game (Panel umpires will use OfficialsHQ and complete these digitally so paperwork doesn’t need to be supplied)
- Time must be allowed between games for umpires to complete this task.
- Bench Officials – only 5 bench officials permitted.
- Results – must be entered into PlayHQ by 6pm – including media best players for each team. Paperwork must be submitted to AFL Barwon by 10am Monday morning via the mail slot.
E SCORING is also a requirement for ALL A Grade games (in addition to normal score process).
- Please ensure you have someone assigned to this job. Completing this task also makes your end of day administration MUCH faster. Please see the Match Day Operations Manual for step-by-step instructions.
Players are not permitted to take the court unless they are registered in both PlayHQ & Netball Connect.
“Every player must be a registered member of their club on the clubs Netball Connect and PlayHQ databases.
Penalties for not registering players with their club before they take the court: Loss of 4 Premiership Points and $50 fine to the offending club on each occurring occasion.”
All Match Day resources can be found on our BRAND NEW ‘AFL Barwon Netball’ website.
Camryn has spent a lot of time redesigning this site to best support clubs moving forward.
This also includes the NEW Match Day Operations Manual, which we hope will support new administrators, or even those who have been in the role before.
**Please note some of the old pages on the website still exist as we transition, but the below site will be your source moving forward.
10. Club Umpires
10.1 Umpires officiating at the 17&U, 19&U, E Grade, D Grade and C Grade matches must have a minimum C Grade Umpires Badge.
Note: Special circumstances will apply for the assessment and badging of trainee umpires. These will be determined by AFL Barwon.
REMINDER: clubs are required to email through their umpire rosters by the conclusion of each round to
Uniform Requirements – Club and Panel Umpires
9.8 Club Umpires are to be dressed appropriately in umpire’s attire: White t-shirt or jumper, white or navy shorts or skirt, correct sports shoes. White or navy tracksuit pants/leggings and white rain jacket are permitted.
9.9 Panel umpires are to be dressed appropriately in umpire’s attire: White t-shirt or jumper, white or navy skirt or shorts, and correct sport shoes. Penalty: $20.00 fine to the offending Club or Panel Umpire
Purchase uniform from our online shop
https://shop.locosportswear.com.au/collections/afl-barwon
Pre-Game Checks – Club and Panel Umpires
12.9 Club and panel umpires shall ensure that players:
- 12.9.1 Are wearing NO jewellery, earrings or piercings. NO taping of piercings allowed NOTE – wedding ring or medical alert bracelet may be taped.
- 12.9.2 Fingernails are short & smooth. NO taping allowed.
- 12.9.3 NO gloves except where a qualified and registered medical certificate is provided to the officiating umpires prior to the player taking the court for medical conditions requiring the wearing of gloves.
- 12.9.4 Sunglasses are not permitted.
CDFNL Netball
CDFNL Representative Coach Applications for the Association Championships are now open!
Express your interest here: https://forms.gle/WPRPn8bVot7w2fBr7
The CDFNL will be entering six junior teams into the Netball Victoria Association Championships in 2025! Teams will compete across two divisions in the 13 & Under, 15 & Under, and 17 & Under age groups.
Coaching Requirements:
Netball Vic requires all coaches must hold at minimal Development Level accreditation, and have a current Netball Victoria Membership.
Applications close: Thursday 10th April 2025.
15 & Under & 17 & Under – Key Dates
Tryouts:
- Sunday 27th April
- Tuesday 29th April
- Sunday 4th May (optional)
Training Sessions:
- Sunday 11th May
- Sunday 18th May
Association Championships Tournament:
- Sunday 25th May at Darebin Netball Association, Thornbury
Division 1 Only – Junior Interleague:
- Saturday 15th June at Colac
13 & Under – Key Dates
Tryouts:
- Sunday 11th May
- Tuesday 14th May
- Sunday 18th May (optional)
Training Sessions:
- Sunday 1st June
- Sunday 8th June
Association Championships Tournament:
- Sunday 22nd June at State Netball Centre, Parkville
Division 1 Only – Junior Interleague:
- Saturday 15th June at Colac
For more details please contact Tracey Tann - 0438 058 409
The CDFNL will be entering six junior teams into the Netball Victoria Association Championships in 2025!
Teams will compete across two divisions in the 13 & Under, 15 & Under, and 17 & Under age groups.
Please note in details below : There are different dates for the 15/17 & Under compared to the 13 & Under due to Netball Vic tournament dates.
Applications close: Thursday 24th April
Cost: Estimate $50.00 (if selected)
15 & Under & 17 & Under – Key Dates
Tryouts:
- Sunday 27th April
- Tuesday 29th April
- Sunday 4th May (optional)
Training Sessions:
- Sunday 11th May
- Sunday 18th May
Association Championships Tournament:
- Sunday 25th May at Darebin Netball Association, Thornbury
Division 1 Only – Junior Interleague:
- Saturday 15th June at Colac
13 & Under – Key Dates
Tryouts:
- Sunday 11th May
- Tuesday 13th May
- Sunday 18th May (optional)
Training Sessions:
- Sunday 1st June
- Sunday 8th June
Association Championships Tournament:
- Sunday 22nd June at State Netball Centre, Parkville
Division 1 Only – Junior Interleague:
- Sunday 15th June at Colac
For more details please contact Tracey Tann - 0438 058 409
Register your interest here: https://forms.gle/JBqeTi24JXd31h6E8
Junior Netball
With team entries now closed, we are now working through divisions and grading for the first fortnight of competition. Please be patient with us as this is a very large task to undertake. Once fixtures are completed, correspondence will be delivered to advise they are final.
See below the season dates for the Junior Midweek Netball competitions.
Affiliation netballs for the midweek competition are available for collection from the AFL Barwon Highton Office between 9am and 5pm.
There are a few rule changes concerning the midweek competition for the 2025 Winter season.
1. Rule 7.1 Players must take the court in at least 4 games to be eligible to participate in that division’s finals series. If the minimum number of games is not played, the player is ineligible to play finals. (Once a player takes the court in the 6th game, they are ineligible to play in a lower grade/division in the same age group).
- Number of games that seals a player in a higher division lowered from 8 games to 6 games.
2. Rule 8.6 Players may play no more than two games over one night in midweek competitions.
8.6.1 Movement between teams is not permitted in the grading period of the competition without the explicit consent of the competition coordinator.
8.6.2 Other competition rules relating to player movement and game limits still apply.
- Removed the part about not playing two games in the same age group over one night to hopefully reduce the number of forfeits we see from teams not being able to find fill ins. However, movement between teams is not permitted during the grading period (first 4 rounds) and competition rules relating to player movement and game limits still apply. Players will not be able to fill in for a team in the same age group if they become sealed in a higher division.
3. Rule 8.9 Players can play in both Saturday Division 2 & Friday night Finals over one weekend, however, this must not be in the same age group and must not exceed two finals per weekend.
- Previously not allowed. Must still qualify for each respective team as per rules 5.1, 6.1 and 7.1.
The representative teams will have a few weeks off their weekly competitions over the school holiday and Easter period. Games will resume on Monday 28th April.
Resource Links
Netball Umpiring
10. Club Umpires
10.1 Umpires officiating at the 17&U, 19&U, E Grade, D Grade and C Grade matches must have a minimum C Grade Umpires Badge.
Note: Special circumstances will apply for the assessment and badging of trainee umpires. These will be determined by AFL Barwon.
REMINDER: clubs are required to email through their umpire rosters by the conclusion of each round to
9.8 Club Umpires are to be dressed appropriately in umpire’s attire: White t-shirt or jumper, white or navy shorts or skirt, correct sports shoes. White or navy tracksuit pants/leggings and white rain jacket are permitted.
9.9 Panel umpires are to be dressed appropriately in umpire’s attire: White t-shirt or jumper, white or navy skirt or shorts, and correct sport shoes. Penalty: $20.00 fine to the offending Club or Panel Umpire
Purchase uniform from our online shop.
12.9 Club and panel umpires shall ensure that players:
- 12.9.1 Are wearing NO jewellery, earrings or piercings. NO taping of piercings allowed NOTE – wedding ring or medical alert bracelet may be taped.
- 12.9.2 Fingernails are short & smooth. NO taping allowed.
- 12.9.3 NO gloves except where a qualified and registered medical certificate is provided to the officiating umpires prior to the player taking the court for medical conditions requiring the wearing of gloves.
- 12.9.4 Sunglasses are not permitted.
Please be reminded of the statewide ‘If they’re wearing green, they’re under 18’ umpiring initiative!
Our underage umpires will be out in force with both leagues commencing this weekend, and while NO umpire deserves to be abused or disrespected – there is absolutely no place in our competitions for disrespect of our underage umpires.
Don’t be a by-stander if this occurs – please stand up and support our umpires, and advise AFL Barwon of any instances whereby this occurs.
If you club needs additional wristbands please reach out to
Club Development
New Updates
A warm welcome to our recently appointed new football coaches, please don't forget to register by following the below link.
We have been approached with the opportunity for club trainers to complete their level 1 trainer’s course.
The cost is $299 per person with the date TBC pending registrations.
If you are interested, please email
An increasing challenge clubs are facing is the support to community members for mental health and wellbeing. Those not familiar with the vast numbers of resources, programs, toolkits and guides make sure you check out the Mental Health & Wellbeing Page on the AFL Help website.
The 2025 PILA Goal Post Subsidy Program is now open for all AFL Victoria affiliated clubs.
Subsidy will provide up to $1000 towards the cost of new posts for your ground.
This program is open until 30 June, 2025
Further information and the application form can be found at https://pila.com.au/subsidy/
We want to hear about your club!
AFL Barwon and AFL Victoria want to better understand your clubs’ structures,
challenges and priorities so we can better support, not only your club, but club volunteers across the state for 2025 and beyond.
The best ways to complete the survey are to:
- Complete as a whole committee at your next committee meeting; or
- Get a few members of your committee to complete the survey separately in their own time.
No matter how the survey is completed, we appreciate your time and insight regarding your clubs’ structures, challenges, and priorities.
To complete the Club Health Check, please click here - Club Health Check
