The VU Western Spurs are a

Women's Australian rules football Women's Australian rules football (in areas where it is popular, known simply as women's football or women's footy or women's AFL), is the female-only form of Australian rules football, generally with some modification to the laws of the game. ...

club who compete in the Northern Football League (Australia) and the AFL Masters Victoria competition . Based in Footscray, they play home games at Henry Turner Oval. They were formerly known as the St Albans Spurs who competed in the

Victorian Women's Football League The Victorian Women's Football League (VWFL) was the oldest and largest Australian rules football league for women in the world, consisting of 47 clubs from Victoria, Australia, across seven divisions and a total of over 1,000 players. Th ...

and reserves competition.

History

They were founded in 1993 by

Debbie Lee Deborah "Debbie" Lee (born 1974) is a former Australian rules football player and coach. She has campaigned for recognition of women's Australian rules football in Australia, giving up a WNBL career to focus on developing the sport. She was ...

who has become a significant figure in the progression and success of women's AFL. In 2015 the club was rebranded and relocated to Footscray, obtaining a sponsorship from the Maribyrnong City Council and Victoria University and were renamed the VU Western Spurs. They have strong ties to the Western Bulldogs; from 2018 their VFL Women's side used their name and colours. Jordan Roughead, a former Western Bulldogs ruckman, was also an assistant coach of the club from the 2015 - 2018 season.

Colours

The VU Western Spurs have one guernsey which is predominately sky blue with dark blue trimmings and features their symbolic WS in white. At home the Spurs wear dark blue shorts and dark blue socks. When playing away from home the Spurs don all-white shorts with a blue stripe running down each side and dark blue socks.

Club song

When relocating to Footscray and rebranding as the VU Western Spurs the club began using a new song 'The Spurs of the Mighty West' which is to the tune of the

AFL AFL may refer to: Sports * American Football League (AFL), a name shared by several separate and unrelated professional American football leagues: ** American Football League (1926) (a.k.a. "AFL I"), first rival of the National Football Leagu ...

club Greater Western Sydney Giants song. The closing line of 'We're the Spurs of the mighty west', was a creative way to include the club's connection to the

Western Bulldogs The Western Bulldogs are a professional Australian rules football team that competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's premier competition. Founded in 1877 as the Footscray Football Club, and based in West Footscray in the o ...

who sing 'We're the team of the mighty west'. ''Well there's a big big sound'' ''from the west of the town.'' ''It's the sound of the mighty Spurs.'' ''You'll see our great endeavour,'' ''true Spurs we stick together,'' ''we will always love the Spurs.'' ''We ride the biggest bumps'' ''and the hardest hits.'' ''We're stronger than the rest.'' ''We're the VU Western Spurs,'' ''we're the biggest and the best'' ''And we will never surrender,'' ''we'll fight until the end.'' ''We're the Spurs of the mighty west.'' ''And we will never surrender,'' ''we'll fight until the end.'' ''We're the Spurs of the mighty west.''

AFLW Representatives

The VU Western Spurs have had 8 players drafted to the

AFLW AFL Women's (AFLW) is Australia's national semi-professional Australian rules football league for female players. The first season of the league in February and March 2017 had eight teams; the league expanded to 10 teams in the 2019 season, 1 ...

competition whilst registered as a Spurs player. In the 2016 AFLW Draft, Alyssa Mifsud, Shelley Scott, Ainslie Kemp and

Sarah Lampard Sarah Lampard (born 7 July 1997) is an Australian rules footballer playing for the Melbourne Football Club#AFL Women's team, Melbourne Football Club in the AFL Women's competition. She was drafted by Melbourne with their seventeenth selection a ...

were all drafted to

Melbourne FC The Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed the Demons, is a professional Australian rules football club that competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's elite competition. It is based in Melbourne, Victoria, and plays its home ...

, Bree White was drafted by

Collingwood FC The Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed the Magpies or colloquially the Pies, is a professional Australian rules football club based in Melbourne that competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's elite competition. The club ...

and

Ashleigh Guest Ashleigh Guest (born 10 April 1990) is a retired Australian rules footballer who played for Greater Western Sydney, Melbourne, and the Western Bulldogs in the AFL Women's (AFLW). Guest was drafted by the Greater Western Sydney Giants with th ...

was drafted to Greater Western Sydney Giants. In the 2017

Rookie Draft,

Naomi Ferres Naomi Ferres (born 26 October 1997) is an Australian rules footballer playing for the Western Bulldogs in the AFL Women's (AFLW). Ferres was drafted by the Western Bulldogs with the club's first selection and the third pick overall in the 201 ...

was chosen by the

at pick number 3. Ferres went on to win the

2018 AFL Women's Grand Final The 2018 AFL Women's Grand Final was an Australian rules football match held on 24 March 2018 to determine the premiers of the 2018 AFL Women's season, the league's second season. It was contested by the and and was won by the Western Bulldog ...

and took a crucial mark in the defensive 50 on the siren to deny the

Brisbane Lions The Brisbane Lions is a professional Australian rules football club based in Brisbane, Queensland, that plays in the Australian Football League (AFL). The club was formed in late 1996 via a merger of the Melbourne-based 1883 foundation VFL c ...

a chance to tie the game. The 2018

Draft saw Jessie Davies also be drafted by the

at pick 46. During the 2019

Draft, Elisabeth Georgostathis was drafted by the

at pick 9. In the preseason of the 2020

season , Vivien Saad was signed by the North Melbourne Football Club. The Sydney Swans AFLW side was introduced ahead of the 2022/2023 season and with this came new opportunities for footballers across the country. A premiership Spur, Aimee Whelan was one of the inaugural signings for the club after a breakthrough season in the VFLW

Club Honours and Achievements

2004 - VWFL Seniors Premiers vs. Melbourne University 2009 - Best Conducted Club for the Western Region 2011 - VWFL Seniors Premiers vs.

Darebin Falcons The Darebin Women's Sports Club, nicknamed the Falcons, is based in the northern suburbs of Melbourne and primarily notable for its Australian rules football team which competes in the highest-level Victorian state league – the VFL Women's (VF ...

2012 - Victoria University Sports Awards: Sporting Club of the Year 2012 - VWFL Reserves Premiers 2017 - Northern Football League (Australia) Division 2 Premiers vs West Preston Lakeside 2019 - Northern Football League (Australia) Division 1 Premiers vs Diamond Creek 2019 - Northern Football League (Australia) Division 2 Premiers vs Heidelberg

Coaching staff

Football Department

References

Victorian Women's Football League clubs 1993 establishments in Australia Australian rules football clubs established in 1993 Australian rules football clubs in Melbourne Sport in the City of Maribyrnong {{AFL-team-stub