Eleni Glouftsis’ journey to becoming the first female field umpire in AFL history began with a notice in the high school bulletin in Year 9. Glouftsis was a footy fanatic, and had been playing for years at Adelaide High School when she saw the AFL female pathway advertisement.
“At that time in South Australia there wasn’t really great pathways for women once you finished playing in high school,” she tells Guardian Australia after taking her bow centre-stage at Docklands. “I really loved football and being involved in fitness so I gave it a go and really enjoyed it.
“In hindsight I’m definitely glad I kept up with the umpiring. I’d love to play AFLW, but I just love being involved at the elite level, and I was happy to be able to do it in some form.”
Glouftsis’ landmark call-up comes in the same year as Tracey Gaudry’s appointment as first female CEO of an AFL club, as well as the incredible success of the inaugural season of AFLW. Glouftsis believes that the emergence of women in AFL speaks for the importance of pathways such as the one that was available to her.
“It’s really important in terms of the progression of the game. We’ve seen a lot more women involved in the past few years. They’ve gone through the ranks and they’re ready to be in these elite positions now.
“The AFLW was so fantastic to show everyone that women can be involved in all aspects of the game, and that it should be a game for everyone in Australia. Now with women players and hopefully more women umpires at the elite level, hopefully we can show them that women are just as capable as men.”
Glouftsis will officiate her second match this weekend, in the game between Melbourne and Gold Coast in Alice Springs. Things haven’t all gone her way, however, with controversy ensuing over the decision – made in consultation with umpires’ boss Hayden Kennedy – to throw up the ball rather than bounce it in the second half of her debut game on Sunday. Glouftsis had previously had to recall two of her bounces – a situation she described as “really disappointing”.
“I’m generally quite a good bouncer, [but] with the turf being re-laid last week, a number of the umpires had a lot of trouble with the soft surface.”
Glouftsis is aware of the conjecture over her difficulty with bouncing being a gender issue, but said she had not paid much attention to it. “We had another umpire tossing it up because he was having the same issue. It’s not a gender issue, and I hope I can prove that in Alice Springs.”
Nonetheless, the debate has reignited calls for a review of the AFL’s traditional centre-bounce, with coaches seemingly torn on the issue. After Sunday’s match, John Worsfold said he would be happy to scrap the bounce, while Adam Simpson was critical of the decision by the umpires to change from bouncing to throwing the ball midway through the game. But Glouftsis said such decisions were common when conditions changed in a match, such as after rain. She also hinted that the bounce might have outlived its historical purpose.
“Obviously it’s a really traditional part of the game, and I love the unique aspects of AFL. But a number of umpires have had shoulder reconstructions, and one umpire is still out with a back injury because of it.
“The way it is now, the bounce is so predictable because it has to be so straight. It takes away the whole purpose of the bounce, which was to be unpredictable. With the way our game’s changing, it really makes you think, ‘is there a place for the bounce any more?’”
With her second outing less than a week away, Glouftsis said she had some time to reflect on all the people who had supported her along the journey, including her 91-year-old grandmother, who made the trip from Adelaide along with her mother, father, brother and sister, as well as her partner Dillon Tee, who is also an AFL (boundary) umpire. Glouftsis said she and Tee had just purchased their first home in Adelaide when she got the call to move to Melbourne to pursue her umpiring career.
“It was really challenging, but Dillon was such a great support. He said ‘if it doesn’t work, let’s just move back again’. At this point, it makes it all worth it.”
Glouftsis said she hoped her debut would encourage other women to consider umpiring. “If you’re passionate about football, umpiring is such a great way to be involved. It increases your fitness, your confidence, your leadership; there’s so many skills you learn from being part of a football environment.
“It’s a great way to be part of the great game of footy.”
