Kyneton Football Netball Club has said it is “horrified” at the thought members of the club have felt unsafe or unwelcome.
On Wednesday, the Tigers released a statement on their Facebook page, following a number of media reports speaking about the club and its environment.
As reported by Star Weekly, the majority of the Tigers’ women’s football side has left the club and formed a new club, the Kyneton Women’s Football Club.
The new club, which is known as the Eagles, has said it wanted to provide a safe and inclusive environment where women and gender diverse players can thrive.
The new club has yet to find a league to play in with the Riddell District, Central Victoria and Ballarat leagues knocking them back.
The club is still seeking to join the RDFNL for this season.
It has launched a petition calling for the league to change its mind and has been seeking legal advice.
KFNC said in its statement that it would like to share some of its thoughts with the community.
It said it had been subjected to a “barrage of negative” reporting.
“We are horrified at the idea that women, gender diverse people or anyone else feels unsafe or unwelcome within our club,” the statement said.
“We have always tried to foster a safe environment for everyone, including our players, members, supporters and volunteers.
“Where issues have been raised with our committee, they have been dealt with in a timely manner.
“Our efforts were recognised by the AFL in 20201, when we were named the most inclusive club in Victoria.”
The club said there was always room for improvement and its recent efforts include contacting women who have long standing relationship with the club and asking them what they do well and where they can improve and pursuing certification as an AFL women’s charter club.
The club said some of its members had been subject to insults in correspondence and social media posts.
“At our core, we’re a group of volunteers donating our time to provide sports programs for our kids and friends,” the club said.
“We are doing our best. We ask everyone in our community to think about whether you are contributing to making our community safer or more inclusive through your actions and comments.
“There’s one thing we all have in common: a love of community sport. We can all take positive steps from here for the benefit of our community.”
