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Sports Discrimination Case Upheld ... The full text of the decision, which can be viewed at the following web address http://vcat.vic.gov.au, (click on the link “what’s new”) provides detail in regard to the law, interpretation, the application of legal principles, legislative history, rationale of the Female Participation Regulation and substantial evidence in regard to the strength, stamina and physique of boys and girls, all of which makes interesting reading. For this article however, we will include only the conclusions of Justice Stuart Morris, quoting directly from the full text of the decision. CONCLUSIONS “I find that it was unlawful for the football associations to exclude girls from the MSJFL Australian Rules competition for those under 14 on 1 January 2003. But I also find that it was lawful for the football associations to exclude girls from the MSJFL Australian Rules competition for those under 15 on 1 January 2003. I make these findings because the relative differences between the strength, stamina and physique of boys and girls has not been shown to be sufficiently significant to be relevant in the participation in an Australian Rules football competition for under 14 year olds. But the relative differences have been shown to be sufficiently significant to be relevant to participation in an Australian Rules football competition for under 15 year olds.”
“I wish to make it clear that I am not giving my endorsement
to a rule which excludes girls from under 15 football. Rather my
decision is that it is lawful for a football association to adopt and
apply such a rule. For my part, the decision as to whether girls play
under 15 or, even, under 16 football should be left to the girls
themselves. Not only is this consistent with notions of free choice,
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“There is another factor which I believe is relevant. As I have illustrated by reference to the Grimmer study, boys over 13 who play football are typically stronger and fitter than boys of that age generally. There is an element of self selection at work. When it comes to girls playing Australian Rules football the same process of self selection is likely to occur; but to an even greater degree. This means that the girls who will typically wish to play Australian Rules football in the under 15 and under 16 competitions will be those with a physique, strength or stamina at the upper end of the range for girls of that age. They are also likely to be relatively highly skilled in the playing of football. A wise policy will be one which takes the self selection factor into account.” “There is also a strong case for sporting associations to advance equal opportunity by allowing smaller or physically weaker players to choose to play in a younger age group. Such an approach is consistent with all the expert evidence given in this case. It reflects the fact that there is a huge variation in physique within each sex at a particular age. It also reflects the fact that, especially during the period of 10 to 16 years, people do not grow at the same rate. In some New South Wales schools there is a rule that a player can weigh down to a younger age group in Rugby if they are more than one standard deviation below the mean for their age group. I have no doubt that this sort of rule promotes equal opportunity. In Australian Rules football, the rule might be that a player can choose to play in a younger age group for the season if the player’s height and weight are more than one standard deviation below the means for their age group at a fixed date at the commencement of the season.
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