QBE Sydney Swans Academy staff member Kristie Whittard is one of seven representatives from across Australia who have been acknowledged for their outstanding contribution to women’s football as part of the 2022 Chemist Warehouse AFLW Community Ambassador program.
Established in 2021, the program recognises members from the football community who have been instrumental in facilitating and nurturing the remarkable growth of women’s and girls’ football.
Each 2022 Chemist Warehouse AFLW Community Ambassador receives a $1,000 grant from the Women’s Football Fund to donate to the club of their choice , a virtual networking event hosted by AFL General Manager of Women’s Football, Nicole Livingstone and the opportunity to be involved in the 2022 NAB AFLW Season Seven Finals Series.
Kristie's football journey
It’s a story that our footy community (and sports around the world) had become all too familiar with. Kristie loved playing footy in primary school until, at age nine, was told she couldn’t play the sport she loved as girls weren’t allowed to play school or club footy in Melbourne’s Outer East.
Determined to challenge the status quo, Kristie immersed herself in club culture and set about an unusual pathway back to footy. Unable to play, she instead became Australian and World Karate Champion where she competed internationally against women as a teenage girl.
In an act of fate, it was with the Australian team that her pathway would again intersect with AFL where she was mentored by the late Tom Hafey who inspired her to keep fighting to play footy. Kristie kept getting around footy at all levels, often accompanying her brothers at local games, playing in the backyard and dreaming about the day women would play AFL.
Kristie moved to Sydney in her mid-20s, but she would have to wait another decade but eventually realised her dream of pulling on the boots when she signed up to play for the Manly Warringah Wolves. The rest is history, with Kristie or “Twiggy” as she is best known, continuing to be part of the Wolves to this day, coaching and running, and doing plenty of work around the club.
Now a mother of two teenagers, Kristie is also heavily involved in the Manly Bombers – the region’s junior footy club. She coaches youth boys and girls teams, and spends her spare time coaching other coaches on the best approaches to coach junior girls. By developing better coaches, Kristie knows there’ll be improved on-field results, greater retention of players and a better experience for everyone involved in Sydney footy.
With her CV at community level brimming, Kristie is now entrenching herself into the elite ranks, coaching at the QBE Sydney Swans Academy and working toward a development role for the Sydney Swans’ AFLW team. Kristie reflects that one of her proudest football moments was watching her beloved Swans’ AFLW side take the field for the first time this season.
Kristie’s contribution to grassroots footy in NSW is significant. She’s dedicated to growing AFL and ensuring girls and women can play footy, regardless of their cultural upbringing and circumstances.