A kit and equipment donation from Havant & Waterlooville Women’s FC has given a boost to the girls’ football team at HSDC.
Havant & Waterlooville Football Club reformed its women’s division in June 2022, which was perfect timing as the Lionesses then shined a huge spotlight on women’s football.
Since formation, Hawks Women has been developing a community ethos for its team, which caught the attention of HSDC’s Community Engagement team.
HSDC has been developing a women’s football squad, as part of its Be Active provision, in the hopes to develop this into an academy to highlight the importance of supporting girls to take part in sports.
A sponsorship was made by Hawks Women, with a kind donation of kit and equipment including professional-use match footballs for the HSDC team. Both parties hope to develop a community partnership – to highlight women’s football, get local people involved, and give back to communities.
Abi Summers, Community Engagement Manager at HSDC, said:
“We are so excited to begin working closer with the Hawks Women – we can see them being great role models for our girls’ football, and we are so appreciative of their generous donation of quality kit and equipment to pledge their commitment to help shine a spotlight on the very important women’s side of football.”
Since the idea of a partnership began, a member of the Hawks Women has even joined the HSDC Community Engagement team, maximising the ability to work together.
HSDC already partners closely with Havant & Waterlooville Football Club as support of our Level 3 BTEC Diploma – Football Performance & Coaching, also known as the Havant & Waterlooville FC Academy, so this latest link helps to strengthen the relationship between the club and the College.
Chris Cooper, Assistant Manager of Hawks Women and Hawks Academy first team coach at HSDC, said:
“Havant and Waterlooville Women are very keen to support the HSDC women’s football team in any way we can. We have started by donating a box of equipment, this includes training and match footballs. We have also donated navy blue shorts to help with ‘period anxiety’, a topic that is gaining quite a bit of media attention at the moment.
“We are very proud to have a partnership with the HSDC Community Engagement team, we are hoping that our links with the College as a whole can continue to grow and benefit all parties involved. We look forward to working closely with the HSDC Womens team moving forward.”
The HSDC women’s football team trains on the South Downs Campus AstroTurf on Mondays from 4.30pm to 6pm.
Lauren Clark, Sport and Public Services Lecturer at HSDC, said:
“We welcome players of any ability to join and socialise with others with similar sporting interests and to have fun.
“We are hoping to continue to grow to build a women’s academy over the next few years. We are delighted to have support from Hawks Women which will hopefully encourage more girls to play football.”