By Oliver Winn
Woori Yallock Football Netball Club’s (WYFNC) first female president has been selected for the AFL’s Lead Your Way program this season.
Donna McLennan was voted in as president last November and decided to apply for AFL’s Lead Your Way program which aims to upskill women and gender diverse people in leadership roles around Victoria.
Ms McLennan came into the club after working in the construction industry and said her goal was for WYFNC to become the “best club possible” in the Yarra Valley.
“I’m coming from a strategic business point on trying to grow the club and for it to become the best club possible in the Yarra Valley,” Ms McLennan said.
When it comes to the Lead Your Way program, she said she’s excited for “the whole thing” such as networking events, skills workshops and online webinars all about how to run a club.
“I believe that it’s a really good place for skill development and also to build on networks as well,” Ms McLennan said.
Navigating the male dominated world of football, Ms McLennan aims to provide a more inclusive environment for women at the club.
But, she finds the attitude towards women in sport at WYFNC isn’t the problem – it’s the lack of facilities accommodating towards women at the club that needs to be addressed.
“I don’t find that it’s necessarily about the boys don’t accept the women being there – they’re definitely on board with that,” Ms McLennan said.
“It’s more about not having those facilities for women.”
“We’re looking at upgrading our change rooms, because I believe we’re the last club in the Yarra Valley that does not have change rooms that accommodate women.”
Being a non-for-profit organisation, WYFNC has to source its money from government and council grants, obstructing Ms McLennan’s ability to implement key facilities.
She said she’d already applied for governmental grants but they were rejected, which has left the club to fundraise the rest.
Though the club has plenty of volunteers happy to contribute their time, the hardest part is finding people who are willing to donate to the club.
Despite this, Ms McLennan plans to run some fun events while she is president, such as a golf ball helicopter drop with a $10,000 price.
Since she’s still only new to the role, she said there’s a little bit of pressure to succeed, which is part of the reason why she applied for the Lead Your Way program.
But even still, Ms McLennan said she’s surrounded by a great club and believes “everyone is an absolute asset”.
In the end, it’s a team effort.
“They’re just a great bunch to have.”
