Players that compete in the Shepparton Darts Association women’s pink ribbon five-a-side tournament this weekend will wear a splash of pink in support of the National Breast Cancer Foundation.
Jessica Smith is organising the club’s first women’s five-a-side event.
She said after discovering thriving women’s darts competitions in neighbouring towns, she felt inspired to organise the first at the Shepparton Darts Association hall.
“Normally it’s only a five-a-side tournament for men, there’s actually never been a women’s one held because there was never enough women,” Smith said.
“But recently I’ve been attending competitions in Albury and Mulwala where there’s a lot of female players.
“Myself and two other girls decided we would hold a five-a-side event (in Shepparton) and we wanted to do it for a charity.”
Smith said the month of October was of special significance to her.
“Breast cancer is very close to my heart, my sister actually had breast cancer twice, triple negative which is hereditary and very aggressive,” Smith said.
“Because there were never enough women (to play in a tournament), I never actually thought about attempting to do it, but seeing how many were actually willing to travel.
“We’ve got teams coming from Geelong, Albury, Yarrawonga; people from everywhere are coming to Shepparton to play in this competition.”
The event will not only help in spreading cancer awareness, Smith said, but also aimed to help promote women in sport.
“It’s opened my eyes to the fact that a lot of females do play darts,” she said.
“You see it on the TV, but not as much on a local level.”
The club has raised $1100 to be donated to the Breast Cancer Foundation, with much more expected to be raised at the event on Saturday.
For more information on the event, or to donate visit: https://fundraise.nbcf.org.au/
