TO mark Female Football Week, the Gippsland Soccer League hosted a Female Football Celebration at Korumburra City Soccer Club on Saturday, May 11. 

The afternoon kicked off with two fixtures from the recently formed U13 Girls competition. 

Large groups of supporters were on hand to cheer on the newest members of the Gippsland Soccer League. 

With Wonthaggi and Phillip Island winning their respective matches against Drouin and Leongatha it was then on to the short skills clinics that were run by female coaches from clubs within the league. 

More than 90 junior players from across the region had arrived to participate in the clinics with a special appearance by A-League/Matilda star Alex Chidiac who moved between groups to help out the girls with some skills. 

The atmosphere was electric as girls took over all corners of the multiple pitches that had been set up. 

Next up; there was a free meet and greet with the Julie Dolan award winner Chidiac as families and excited players lined up to get a photo and autograph from the star who took to the pitch to represent Australia in the recent Women’s World Cup. 

A Q&A session followed as Chidiac fielded questions from attendees of all ages. 

It was revealed that Chidiac is definitely Messi over Ronaldo and a big believer in pasta before and after games. 

She also really likes the colour orange and still fangirls over teammates such as Katrina Gorry. 

The massively successful event concluded with a headline match between the women’s teams from Phillip Island Breakers and Mirboo North as they played under lights. 

The event was not only a wonderful celebration of females in football but a wonderful indication of the massive growth the game has experienced as a result of the FIFA Women’s World Cup last year. 

Congratulations to all involved and a big thankyou to Alex Chidiac for taking the time to inspire a whole new generation of Matildas.