A Strategy That Builds the Game… And the Opportunity to Show It

24 Mar

Written By Victoria Morton

Starting again

I went back and read the Football Tasmania Strategic Plan.

Before getting into it, I should say this.

I don’t have all the answers.

And I’m conscious that it can sometimes come across like I’m just criticising Football Tasmania.

That’s not the intention.

It’s a tough job. Keeping everyone in the game happy is not easy.

But football is my life.

And like a lot of people, I care deeply about where it goes next.

So instead of just pointing at problems, I thought it was worth trying to put something forward.

Something practical.

Something that might actually help.

I also spent some time looking at what works elsewhere.

The most effective grassroots and sports strategies around the world don’t just build the game.

They show it.

They connect it.

They repeat it.

They tend to have a few things in common:

they make the game visible
they tell real community stories
they use participation as influence
they are consistent, not occasional
they bring people into the game
and they don’t wait to be noticed, they make themselves impossible to ignore

Which led me to a simple thought.

Football in Tasmania doesn’t just need a strategy.

It needs a statewide grassroots campaign.

So here are some ideas.

A way we might work together to grow the game, and show it properly.

I’d genuinely be interested in what others think we could do.

The plan

The Football Tasmania plan is what you would expect from a governing body.

Participation.
Pathways.
Facilities.
Unity.

All there.

All sensible.

All necessary.

And to be fair, there is nothing fundamentally wrong with it.

In many ways, it’s solid.

It focuses on:

growing the game
strengthening competitions
improving facilities
bringing football together

That is exactly what a governing body should be doing.

The opportunity sitting in front of us

The plan focuses on building the game.

And that matters.

But there is an opportunity to take the next step.

To make the game visible.

To connect what is already happening across Tasmania.

To turn participation into presence.

Because right now, football is everywhere.

Every week:

school grounds are full
clubs are running games all day
volunteers are everywhere
families are on the sidelines

But it doesn’t always feel like one connected, visible game.

That’s not a failure.

It’s an opportunity.

What that next step could look like

Not a new plan.

Not a restructure.

An addition.

Pillar 5: Visibility, Advocacy and Storytelling

Because football doesn’t just need to grow.

It needs to be seen.

Show the game

If we are serious about visibility, we have to show the full game.

Not just parts of it.

Football in Tasmania is not one competition.

It is:

junior football
youth football
social football
men’s and women’s football
multicultural clubs and communities
schools full of activity every week
volunteers, families, and local communities

It is every kind of player.

Every kind of participant.

From five-year-olds putting on their boots for the first time…

To senior players still turning up each week.

From community BBQs…

To multicultural events and clubs that bring people together.

That is what makes football visible everywhere.

And that is what needs to be shown.

Because while NPL and WSL are important, and play their role, they are only part of the picture.

They don’t tell the full story of the game.

The full story is broader.

More diverse.

More embedded in community.

And that’s where football is at its strongest.

Tell the real stories

We don’t need to invent anything.

We just need to ask and share.

Ask girls why they play
Ask women what the game means to them
Ask kids what they love
Ask communities what football represents

Those stories already exist.

They just need to be told.

Use the numbers

We are the biggest participation sport in Tasmania.

That’s a strong position.

It should be visible.

Repeated.

Understood.

Because participation is not just a statistic.

It is influence.

Make football visible, everywhere

Clubs are already telling their stories.

But mostly in isolation.

The opportunity is to connect that.

A shared identity.

A shared message.

A sense that this is one game, across the state.

Be present, not occasional

Not just announcements.

Not just reports.

Presence.

Weekly.

Consistent.

Human.

Bring people into the game

Not through statements.

Through invitation.

“Welcome to our club.

This weekend:

16 games
300 players
school grounds in use
families on the sidelines
volunteers running the day

You’re welcome to come and see it.”

A simple advocacy strategy

If we want football to be heard, we need to show up.

Not occasionally.

Consistently.

One way to do that is very simple.

And costs nothing.

Every week. One message. From the game.

Each week, a club or association shares a snapshot of football in their community.

Sent to:

councils
politicians
community leaders
media

Subject: This is football in Tasmania — this weekend

“Welcome from [Club Name].

This weekend:

16 games
300 players
school grounds in use
families on the sidelines
volunteers running the day

This is our club.

This is our community.

You’re welcome to come and see it.”

Not a submission. Not a report.

A presence.

Because one message is easy to miss.

But when it comes from:

different clubs
different regions
every week

It becomes a constant reminder.

This is advocacy

Not through documents.

Through visibility.

This only works if we move together

None of this works in isolation.

Not one club.
Not one association.
Not one voice.

It has to be coordinated.

It has to feel like a movement.

Clubs and associations.

Together.

Not isolated.
Not introverted.

A constant reminder

Every week.

Across the state.

Here we are.

This is football.

This is our community.

Because when that message is repeated, again and again:

the scale becomes obvious
the pressure becomes real
the value becomes undeniable

This is how a voice is built

Not once.