Crows co-captain Chelsea Randall has never been busier.

Off the back of the success of the inaugural AFL Women’s competition, the 25-year-old community programs coordinator has been inundated by schools and clubs experiencing huge growth in the number of young girls wanting to play football.

Speaking at the launch of the Club’s interschool girls-only football carnival – the DCNS Crows Cup – at Adelaide Oval on Monday, Randall said the competition and the Crows’ success continued to positively impact the game at the grassroots level.

The DCNS Crows Cup, developed by Randall when she joined the Club in 2016, is further proof of that fact with three times the number of girls set to participate this year.

Approximately 1,000 school girls comprising 75 teams are expected to take part in the carnival across four days – up from 350 girls across two days last year.

The growth of the carnival and girls school teams is similar to what is being seen by the SANFL in club footy, with this year’s SANFL Juniors season fielding 62 girls teams – up from 16 in its inaugural season in 2016.

According to the SANFL, female club registrations across the state have increased by 35% to 3,732.

Randall said it was rewarding to see just how much the women’s game had grown in the last 12 months.

“When I was making the decision to move across to Adelaide from Western Australia last year I was told South Australia was five to 10 years behind in women’s footy,” she said.

“In the last five or six months, since the commencement of the AFL Women’s Competition, that has turned around significantly and the Club has been inundated by local schools and clubs who have girls who want to give Australian Rules a go. 

“The idea of the DCNS Crows Cup is to encourage more young girls to give football a try in a fun and safe environment. 

“The event also promotes the benefits of physical activity, provides positive role models and introduces girls to the female football pathway in South Australia.

“There’s no doubt that more and more young girls want to pick up a footy and follow in the footsteps of their new heroes – and that’s so great to see.”

The DCNS Crows Cup has partnered with the SANFL to increase the scope of carnivals in the metropolitan area. The carnivals will be held at four locations – West Adelaide, North Adelaide, Woodville and Glenelg – in conjunction with SANFL Development Officers on four days during the next two weeks.

The top-placed team from each of the four days will then go on to play in a curtain raiser match at Adelaide Oval ahead of the Crows’ Round 14 clash with Hawthorn on Thursday, June 22.

World-class defence naval systems manufacturer DCNS has partnered with the Crows to boost the Club’s grassroots programs as one way of assisting the South Australian community and investing in the growth of our future leaders.

“We are thrilled to partner with the Adelaide Football Club on this initiative,” said Brent Clark, CEO, DCNS Australia.

“The DCNS Crows Cup provides a unique opportunity to reach out to female school-age students and hopefully encourage them to become aware of DCNS and the opportunities available to them in the defence industry.”

In April 2016, The Australian Government selected DCNS as its preferred international partner for the design of 12 Future submarines for the Royal Australian Navy. The submarines will be built right here in Adelaide and will provide significant employment opportunities in South Australia and nationwide.

DCNS is committed to developing the confidence of South Australian youth, both in the classroom and on the sporting field, to ensure they become the state’s next leaders – in defence or whatever vocation they choose.