Top Umpires to Officiate in WAFLW Season OpenersWednesday, March 8, 2023 - 8:37 AM

For the first time since the inception of the WAFLW, all League matches in Round 1 this weekend will have (High Performance) WAFL umpires officiating.

Field, boundary and goal umpires from the WAFL have embraced the opportunity to be part of the season opener for women’s football.

Dean Margetts, WAFL & WAFLW Umpiring Operations Manager at the West Australian Football Commission, believes the involvement of these umpires should be celebrated.

“Having the W season start a month earlier has opened the way for this initiative and I need to commend our High Performance Field Coach Justin Orr who has driven this.

We really value the WAFLW competition and the umpires selected for Round 1 are excited to get back out there.

We hope the players, coaches and supporters enjoy having the best umpires in the state officiating their games this weekend,” Margetts said.

High Performance Umpires consist of AFLW Umpires, WAFL GF Umpires, or Umpires with over 100 games experience.

“To have umpires like Matt Adams, Trent McPhee, Ethan Lamont, Lachlan Mazurak, Chad Smith and Luke Caifano out there is massive as most were part of last season’s WAFL Grand Final.

Courtney Gibson and Gabby Simmonds, who are two of our leading female umpires and current AFLW umpires, will also officiate.

We believe this weekend will be a great relationship building exercise for players, coaches and our umpires,” he said.

Justin Orr, Field Umpire High Performance Coach at the West Australian Football Commission, is delighted to be involved.

“ It had become apparent that we need to where possible provide the WAFLW with the highest level of umpires possible.

This is a changing landscape within the umpiring fraternity and we need to recognise and promote the importance of women’s football.

I’m proud to involved and make available a full list of High Performance Field Umpires for this weekend’s matches,” he said.

Having umpired in 7 WAFL Grand Finals, Matt Adams can’t wait to take part in this weekend's action.

“The feeling amongst the umpiring group heading into Round 1 of the WAFLW is a sense of excitement and joy.

For many it’s a time to re-wire the off season brain and put our craft back into action ahead of the men’s season.

How cool that we get to umpire the most talented women in the competition,” he said.