Hello everyone!
My name is Maria Nikolopoulou director of GreekGirlsCan, rugby league coach and former player in Greece and England.
Today I have the pleasure to catch up with Terry Liberopoulos, a Sydney-based magazine publisher, promoter and strong supporter of the Greek Rugby League Association. MN- Something new is coming now to complete and support even more the national Greek women's team.
Now Terry please i will give you the floor to tell us about your vision, how is this started and what are the prospects of this new step for women's rugby league in Greece and Australia.
TL- I have always been on the lookout for Greek heritage female players in Australia to help grow the Women’s game in Greece. It wasn’t until one of the Greek girls that plays for South Sydney emailed me to express her interest in playing for Greece. She told me there were four girls at Souths that had a Greek background.
MN- This sounds amazing idea. Very promising for everyone especially for the girls in Greece.
TL- Indeed! It is important that the girls in Greece have more opportunities and that the Greek Women’s Rugby League continues to grow.
MN- So tell us more about the eligibility and the entry criteria for this team?
TL- Any girl, aged 17 years and over. They must either have been born in Greece or have one parent or grandparent that was born in Greece. We would like them to be playing some kind of Rugby League, be it tackle, Oztag or Leaguetag.
MN- That's good! So the background is not a problem.. any level athletes with basic knowledge of rugby league and related sports can join the team. Now please tell us where is this team going to based?
TL- We are looking at girls from all over Australia but Sydney looks like being the base as most will come from Sydney or nearby areas such as Illawarra, Central Coast, Newcastle and Canberra.
MN- Who is going to train this team?
TL- We are currently putting a team together to help get the girls started. Steve Georgallis, who is coaching Canterbury NRL side is keen on helping out and Stuart McLennan, who coached the Greek national side when they played Turkey, will also be involved.
MN- What are the expectations of the Australian based team? And accordingly what are the expectations of the Greek based team? Are they related?
TL- Yes they are related.
We will follow the same path as the Men’s, meaning we will get the girls playing here and then having them go overseas to help promote, develop, train and play with the girls in Greece.
The enthusiasm I have seen from the girls in Greece is incredible and the introduction of some experience from Australia will grow the game in Greece.
MN- How are these two teams is going to blend and work together?
TL- The girls in Greece will continue to play their own internationals with just the local girls but we will also have matches were we will have a mix of domestic and heritage players.
There is no doubt that the combination of the local girls and the players from Australia will gives us a competitive nation that can challenge for a spot in the 2025 Women’s Rugby League World Cup.
MN- That sounds brilliant! As a rugby league coach this news makes me feel so excited for the future of women's rugby league in Greece. The sport is growing so fast the last 2 years and I am sure we have so many things to expect from these young, passionate players. We are looking forward to it!
Any girls wanting to involved, contact Terry Liberopoulos from the Greek Rugby League Association at terryliberopoulos@hotmail.com
Thank you Terry it's been a pleasure to chat with you today! You are doing brilliant job for the Greek rugby league and the women's game! Best of luck!
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