The theme of International Women's Day today is "#Be Bold for Change". I can't think of more appropriate theme as it relates to the GIANTS.

International Women's Day is fundamentally about recognising the ongoing pursuit of women's rights. 

As a young club, we have a strong record on matters such as inclusion, respect and responsibility and equal opportunity.

As a growing club, we are proud of the strategies and initiatives we have developed as platforms for women's sport. We have been bold. We had no hesitation in pursuing a team in the new AFLW competition. We knew that we would have to stretch and grow as a club to accommodate it - that is not foreign to us as a start-up organisation. We pursue growth. But more than that, we saw the opportunity to provide an opportunity for participation in an elite women's competition as fundamentally important and consistent with our values and aspirations as a club.

It has built on our work in supporting the AFL development pathways for girls and women and in assisting clubs like the Auburn GIANTS. We couldn't be prouder of our AFLW team in their early steps so far. They have earned the respect of the competition, had a thrilling draw against Fremantle and defeated the highly-fancied Melbourne. More importantly, the players are inspiring generations of players to come.

Likewise, our partnership with Netball NSW to develop a GIANTS Netball team has been aspirational. They are a formidable team with three straight wins and we are delighted to be joining them in representing Western Sydney and Canberra. The GIANTS family now comprises two men's team - AFL and NEAFL - and two women's teams - AFLW and GIANTS Netball.

We are proud of the women's platforms we have developed and we are committed to developing further. Our players and staff are involved in a number of International Women's Day activities and events today and whilst that it is important, what is more important is our commitment 365 days a year.