Dave Reynolds and Lauren Arnell speaking to the attendees of the coaching event. Photo: Jordan Bianchini PAFC.

Port Adelaide welcomed almost 40 female state league and community coaches to Alberton Oval on Wednesday evening for a special coaches’ experience.

AFLW assistant coach and SANFL state coaching manager Dave Reynolds, facilitated the event as part of Women’s Coaching Month, an AFL-led initiative to celebrate and promote women in coaching, at all levels.

Attendees were invited to watch a Port Adelaide women’s training session before participating in a Q&A with Reynolds and head coach Lauren Arnell.

“It was fantastic, there were almost 40 female coaches from around South Australia that attended,” Reynolds said.

“I was told there were some great interactions in the room during training while the group watched on and unpacked what was happening on the ground. There were plenty of great learnings.”

At the beginning of the night, Arnell and Reynolds gave insight into the training plan, including the ‘why’ behind each training activity.

AFLW head coach Lauren Arnell answers questions in the room during the Q&A session. Photo: Jordan Bianchini PAFC.

“What we were looking to do is give them a bit of an understanding of what training at AFLW level looks like and how the sessions are structured,” Reynolds said.

“Five years ago, the SANFL created the female coaching academy because female footy was booming and almost all SANFL women’s teams were coached by males.

“The SANFL and the AFL have the goal to grow the number of female coaches that we have in our game, so this was a great opportunity to promote female coaching and develop those we currently have in our system.”

Reynolds reflected on how valuable Arnell’s presence as a coach in an elite sporting environment is to current and aspiring coaches.

“Having Lauren coaching at the highest level, she is a massive role model for female coaches out in the community,” Reynolds said.

“We want to continue removing barriers for women to get into coaching and encourage them to learn and grow and take on higher-level coaching roles where they can. The more females we get involved in coaching, the more that will also positively impact female participation in football.”

Port Adelaide has shown strong support of Women’s Coaching Month, with Arnell and general manager of football Chris Davies also featuring in panel discussions earlier this month.