Tina McLeary, the secretary of Brindabella Blues FC in the ACT, has a saying: as long as no one’s crying – kids, adults, or herself – then it’s been a good day.
“We have the lollipops ready to go!” she joked.
McLeary has been involved in the game for a decade. She was inspired to volunteer when her children began playing for Brindabella, and she saw how she could use her professional and personal skills to assist at the club.
Now, she is the secretary at Brindabella Blues, but she is also so much more. She is the team manager for their Capital Premier League team, she is on the South Side Advisory Council, Premier League Advisory Council and Junior League Advisory Council, and is part of Football Australia’s volunteer focus group.
It’s fair to say that McLeary wears many hats.
“It’s just the usual – you see a problem, you offer to help out, and then the position grows and grows,” she told Our Game.
“You've got so many volunteers at a club looking after their tiny little patch, but you don’t have someone looking over that oversight. So when I was on maternity leave from work, I started looking after a master's team as a manager. That was my first introduction to volunteering with the club.
“Then I started looking after the summer program, because they needed someone to do the logistics and organisation elements. Then it grew from there to be secretary, and then everything else just kind of stacks on after that.”
The club has around 1,000 playing members. On the women’s side, they focus on community and grassroots junior football, while having a partnership with nearby all-women’s and Girls club BellaMonaro FC, who compete in the ACT NPL Girls and Community League Women's.
McLeary has had to battle perceptions over the years in the grassroots football space to have her voice heard.
“I’m not a player, I'm an administrator, and so I certainly have come across a lot of sexism in terms of coaches and technical directors,” she explained.
“It feels like I have to almost prove that I know what I'm doing in order for them to actually talk to me.
“It's a struggle, but once they know that - if they get into trouble - I need to get them out, it kind of changes their perception.
“I feel like it is getting better, but slowly, and not everywhere.”
Part of that cultural change in football has come off the back of the success of the CommBank Matildas at the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023™.
McLeary saw how the young boys at her club became invested in the women’s game, and how that has continued throughout the last few years.
“Seeing the Matildas jerseys and the boys getting excited about the girls’ program is amazing,” she said.
“Recently, we got to do a photoshoot with Michelle Heyman to promote the Matildas coming to Canberra. I had a group of 10- and 11-year-old boys that were just so excited. It didn't matter if it was the Socceroos or the Matildas, they just wanted to be a part of it.
“We were able to get the boys there and show that these 10- and 11-year-old boys don't care, there's no gender relationship there. They just want to be a part of this. They just want to go kick the ball and see the game.”
James White, who is the Head of Participation, Game Development and Infrastructure at Capital Football, said that people like McLeary enrich the football community in the ACT.
“We are so lucky to have people like Tina volunteer at our clubs in the ACT,” he said.
“We thank her for her contribution to the game, particularly to Brindabella Blues FC, over the last decade. We look forward to her continued involvement with football in our region.”
Working with Capital Football is naturally different to working with other, bigger federations. The geographical closeness, as well as the smaller number of clubs, means that McLeary has been able to form personal relationships at all levels of governance.
That special level of collaboration helps clubs to organise what they need to create the best competition at all levels.
“Being a public service town poses some challenges to the office, because traditionally, we like to be consulted,” she joked.
“It's such a small place that, even if people move around clubs, you still see them every Saturday, and you still get to know them. Generally speaking, we do work very well together as clubs, which I think can help Capital Football. They're very open to listening to us as well and taking feedback on board and adjusting.
“They will actually call me. I speak to the CEO on the phone - which is insane! I don’t think that would happen in New South Wales or Victoria.”
Wherever you are located, McLeary expressed that volunteering for a football club is one of the most rewarding things you can do.
“You see the kids getting out there and kicking the ball, and you know that being up at 1am sending emails is all going to be worth it, because the kids get to go out there and have fun,” she said.
“Having done this for a while, I’ve learned new skills that have been able to help me in my professional work.
“Obviously the friendships are special as well. I would say, probably 90% of my friends are somewhat connected to some sort of soccer activity in Canberra.
“Rather than sitting there and thinking, ‘Oh, I wonder why they do that,’ or complaining, just get in there and have a go. You won’t regret it.”