THE AFL advises Fremantle AFLW Head Coach Trent Cooper, Hawthorn AFLW Head Coach Bec Goddard OAM and Melbourne President Kate Roffey will join the AFL Women’s Competition Committee ahead of its fourth meeting for 2021 on Friday, October 8.
Trent Cooper has been Fremantle’s AFLW Head Coach for three seasons. A former player for Swan Districts and Peel Thunder in the WAFL, Cooper has a coaching resume which features working as an assistant coach for the Swan Districts men’s league team and coaching their Colts team to a premiership in 2014. In 2017, Cooper became the coach of the WA Under-18 Women’s team and held a full time role with the WA Football Commission as its female high performance coach.
Bec Goddard OAM will lead Hawthorn’s AFLW team into its inaugural season in the NAB AFL Women’s Competition when it joins the league in Season Seven. Goddard has a proven coaching record in the NAB AFLW, having led the Adelaide Crows to an historic premiership in the first season of AFLW. She coached the Crows for the 2017 and 2018 NAB AFLW seasons before joining the Hawks as Head Coach of their VFLW team.
Kate Roffey is the President of the Melbourne Football Club, a position she has held since April this year after serving on the Melbourne board for eight years. The Club’s first female President, Roffey also balances the role of Director of Deals, Investments and Major Projects at Wyndham City. Her professional career has seen her as the CEO of the Committee of Melbourne, CEO of Vicsport, and Manager of the Melbourne Park Redevelopment for Tennis Australia. Roffey was formerly a Biomechanist at the AIS, and an athlete as a volleyballer and rower.
AFL General Manager Women’s Football Nicole Livingstone said she was pleased Trent, Bec and Kate will be joining the Committee.
"It is great to have people of the calibre of Trent, Bec and Kate joining the AFLW Competition Committee and we look forward to their valuable insights and expertise as we head into Season Six of the Competition," Ms. Livingstone said.
"They are each experienced football personnel who will add a diversity of views with their varied professional and sporting backgrounds.
"Trent and Bec will add the perspectives of current Head Coaches while Kate will provide valuable contributions as a Club President.
"Trent is a respected coach at Fremantle and is a fantastic advocate for women’s football across all levels of the game while Bec’s standing in the AFLW Competition as the inaugural Premiership Coach will forever be etched in the game’s history, so too her appointment as Hawthorn’s inaugural AFLW Coach.
"Kate is a respected leader who has held many roles across elite sport in this country and her experience will be of great value to the Committee.”
As a reminder to all media, AFL Commissioner Simone Wilkie is chair, with the charter for the group to ensure the overall progression of AFLW.
The agenda for Friday's meeting will include discussion on Competition Structure for 2022 and AFLW Expansion.
The AFLW Competition Committee members in attendance at Friday's meeting are as follows
Simone Wilkie AO AFL Commissioner (Chair)
Nicole Livingstone AFL General Manager Women’s Football
Andrew Dillon AFL Executive General Manager Football Operations
Kate Roffey Melbourne President
Diana Taylor Geelong Cats Vice President
Mark Evans* Gold Coast SUNS Chief Executive Officer
Brendon Gale Richmond Chief Executive Officer
Trent Cooper Fremantle AFLW Head Coach
Bec Goddard OAM Hawthorn AFLW Head Coach
Jessica Burger Collingwood Head of Women's Football
Alicia Eva GWS GIANTS Player
Brett Murphy AFLPA General Manager Player & Stakeholder Relations
Michelle Cowan West Coast Eagles AFLW Operations and Wellbeing
Breeanna Brock Brisbane Lions Head of Women's Football
*Departing
