Earlier this very season I was confronted with a dilemma during the pre-season grading process. I noted that a number of young girls were turning up to trial for a place in boys’ teams. I was given to understand that under the rules of competition in the State that girls were indeed permitted to play in Boys’ teams but Boys were not permitted to play in girls teams. In this day and age where “Equality” reigns supreme I found myself in a situation.
Many local clubs in Ipswich simply do not have enough players to form single sex teams hence the “Mixed” team’s solution. In my humble opinion mixed teams offer girls a choice, and particularly in the case of talented girls where playing in a girl only competition is less competitive. The question is: “At what age should this stop, if at all”
Generally speaking, I find that girls and boys prefer to play in same sex teams. In my experience I found that the more talented girls want to compete with boys. That said gender is not a good indicator of talent/ability. E.g. There are strong agile girls and there are weak and poorly coordinated boys and certainly the reverse. My view is that parents, coaches and players in addition to the State Governing body need to take into account not only a player’s physiological capabilities, but also skill level, competitiveness, and maturity.
What is a girl’s motivation for playing in a boys’ team? If a girl is playing simply to enjoy the game and spend time in a group socially, then I don’t think it’s a good reason. If a girl’s ambition is to develop her skills and be challenged as she pursues a career in football then that’s a different matter.
Scientifically there are physical and biological reasons where males will outperform females especially in strength, power, and speed. My research shows that prior to puberty there is no gender based physiological reason to separate girls from boys in football. From personal experience as a coach, I found that girls are often more resilient than boys when playing in a mixed team.
Preventing girls from playing in boys’ teams may well be deemed discriminatory. Should it therefore not be discriminatory to prevent boys from playing in girls’ teams?
Perhaps there ought not be gender driven competitions, junior or senior, and coaches simply should select teams based on merit. How will that impact on participation?
