Zebras and Saints Strengthen Commitment to Women's Footy

The Sandringham Football Club has strengthened its commitment to women’s football in Melbourne’s Bayside region, officially formalising an ongoing partnership with the St Kilda Football Club for the 2020 VFLW season.

The Southern Saints VFLW team, the license of which had originally been managed by St Kilda, will now form part of Sandringham FC, mirroring the relationship the two clubs share at VFL level.

The alignment will see coaches, and strength and conditioning professionals, provided by St Kilda, while Sandringham will be responsible for all medical staff, operations, administration and management.

Sandringham Football Club CEO David Cannizzo said he welcomed this new chapter for the Zebras.

“It was a pleasure to host several Southern Saints games at Wilson Storage Trevor Barker Beach Oval last year, and we’re thrilled for the women to call it home moving forward,” Cannizzo said.

“The interest in women’s football is only growing stronger, so to be able to partner with the Saints to provide this avenue not only for women, but for everyone in the Bayside region to enjoy is phenomenal."

“We can’t wait for the season to start, and we hope to see as many people as possible cheering on the Southern Saints.”

St Kilda Football Club General Manager of Football Operations Simon Lethlean said he was pleased with the women’s alignment.

“We’ve loved watching our VFLW program develop from a southern bayside concept to a successful and well-respected program,” Lethlean said.

“Peta Searle, Jamie Cox and many others built the Southern Saints from scratch, and it has been incredible to witness how our female players have grown not only on the field, but also through the culture they have built off it.

“However, with the introduction of a St Kilda AFLW team and the ongoing evolution of the VFLW competition in mind, we believe aligning with Sandringham will give Southern Saints players the best opportunity to continue their footballing careers at the State League level.”

“We’re thrilled to have Paddy Hill signed on as VFLW Coach for Season 2020, and we are confident he and his team will provide an environment befitting success, with the management and support of the Sandringham Football Club.”

For the interim, Southern Saints players will continue to wear the Saints colours red, white and black and while their main training venue will be Wilson Storage Trevor Barker Beach Oval, they will also use the facilities at RSEA Park as required.

We can't wait to see what this amazing team has to offer.