Deer Park took a gigantic leap into the unknown at the end of the past Victorian Women’s Football League season.
The Lions ruled the jungle in division 3 last year, but this campaign was always going to present a whole new world of threats when they boldly decided to move up three flights and take their place in the premier division.
It was a move fraught with danger for the Lions but a risk club president Mark McGoldrick was willing to take as he strives to make all sections of the club – men, women and juniors – as strong and ambitious as possible.
“We’d spoken about going up to really promote women’s football at Deer Park, so we thought, why not go up to the premier division?” Lions coach Lloyd Balshaw told Star Weekly.
And Deer Park has more than held its own in the VWFL’s top flight, the second tier of women’s club football in Victoria.
Sitting third and with a healthy gap over the fifth-placed side, the Lions are on track to reach the finals.
Balshaw has coached premier division powerhouses in the past, but none have made a transition as astronomical as his current team.
“It’s a big jump,” he said. “They came from winning the premiership in division 3 to playing in the premier division. It’s been a fantastic effort to be playing so well.”
The impact of leading goalkicker Chloe Portelli, star midfielder Samantha Radlof and running half-back Tori Pettit has been profound for Deer Park.
So, too, has the leadership of Shannon McFerran, Amy Catterall and Belinda Hateley – three players Balshaw coached at former club VU St Albans Spurs.
The signing of McFerran, a midfielder Balshaw describes as “one of the greatest names in women’s football”, was a boon for the Lions.
McFerran is a five-time Helen Lambert medallist for VWFL best and fairest, two-time All Australian captain, former Victorian skipper and even played in an EJ Whitten Legends game.
“Out of the blue, she said to me, ‘I can’t let you down’,” Balshaw said. “She’s coming all the way from Malmsbury, training one night a week and playing.
“She’s like a good wine in the centre of the ground … her last three games have been absolutely magnificent.”
Deer Park will face ladder leader Bendigo Thunder under lights at Bendigo’s Queen Elizabeth Oval on Saturday night, part of a night of promotion for women’s football in the town. It’s the first game ever under lights at the QEO for four points in women’s football.
