Grassroots rugby league on the Gold Coast continues to grow all thanks to the hard work of Katie McAllister.
First introduced to the greatest game of all through her daughter’s participation, the QRL Gold Coast area manager started as a volunteer at the Burleigh Bears juniors before moving across to work with Rugby League Gold Coast, to now being recently made the permanent chief administrator for the Gold Coast region.
Her introduction to the sport through volunteering enabled her to identify a need within the female space to experience the same opportunities that have been available to men for many years.
Being able to witness and play a pivotal role in the expansion of rugby league for women on the Coast is a career milestone this pioneer for female pathways is most proud of.
"Currently we’re sitting at around 30 percent growth in the year to date on the Gold Coast alone in terms of women playing the game," McAllister told titans.com.au.
"The continued growth over the past five years on the Gold Coast has been really exciting to watch.
"As we’ve been able to offer opportunities to the girls in the rugby league space, more and more girls are wanting to jump on board and experience it.
"The fact that we’re evolving and changing in the space with girls, trying to offer as many opportunities as we can, the girls growth have just gone through the roof on the Gold Coast."
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Another highlight for McAllister was the recent on-field success earned by the Rugby League Gold Coast women's team winning the inaugural South East Queensland Chair’s Challenge.
"It’s the first year we offered the Chair’s Challenge for females in that premier space," she said.
"For Gold Coast women to win in the inaugural year is a testament to the rugby league environment on the Gold Coast in the girls and women’s space."
Despite the recent growth in female opportunities and success, the hard-working administrator notes there is still ample room to expand the women’s game on and off the field - highlighting coaching as a future goal for growth.
"I’d love to see more females coaching in the competition age group," McAllister said.
"For next year, we’re looking to have more females in that coaching realm and not just as managers and in the backend of the game, but bringing them forward into the game through a coaching capacity."
Match: Titans v Broncos
Round 22 -
home Team
Titans
13th Position
away Team
Broncos
12th Position
Venue: Cbus Super Stadium, Gold Coast
Gracious to be highlighted as a standout female in the league - nominated as the Titans' Women in League role model for 2024 - McAllister believes having a round to shine a light on females and acknowledge their involvement in all areas of the game is important.
"I think women are the backbone of a lot of experiences across the game, and they’re often the hidden gems in the background doing the work and not thinking they are deserving of the acknowledgement," she said.
"To have a weekend in particular for celebrating women in league can bring all those people to the forefront, and the game doesn’t really exist without all the people working tirelessly in the background.
"The round also presents a great opportunity for our kids to acknowledge women, but is also a good opportunity for women to acknowledge themselves and not just hide in the background.
"Step forward and go it’s ok to be thanked, it’s ok to be acknowledged, and it’s ok to be a part of a really fantastic game."
