Continued demonstrated growth of women's umpiring participation in the Territory saw several women control the field of play.

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In the Northern Territory female umpiring participation makes up 23 percent. This is the highest female umpire participation rate in the country.

This CAFL season, umpiring has grown significantly with a 50 percent increase from last year with a 70 percent retention rate.

Jessie Woolford was one of the seven umpires who took to the field on Friday evening.

"It was awesome to walk out on the field because the most evident thing was that it felt different, us girls had a lot of fun and during the game we were all super confident," Woolford said.

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Woolford is now into her fifth year of boundary umpiring in Alice Springs, having started in 2017.

"I started out as a boundary umpire after my PE teacher told me to give it a go because I love running so much and I've stuck with it ever since," Woolford said.

"He told me at a great time, because the next week they had a 'come and try' night which was awesome because everyone was super welcoming and wanted to help me learn the ropes."

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AFLNT Umpire Coordinator, Sam Cunningham said the future of female umpiring in the Territory is looking bright.

"It is fantastic to see the increase in female participation in the CAFL umpiring group," he said.

"This has come down to the inviting environment and leadership from our female umpires.

"Boundary head coach, Jessie Woolford has been doing an outstanding job for a number of years in creating this environment at only 17 years old."

Woolford joined Ahnika Lennie and Alyssa Reid on the boundary, Kasey Ashenden and Bronte Stray umpired on the field with Claire Norman and Alyssa Rosenthal in the goals.

After umpiring for a couple of years, Woolford became an Umpiring Coach in 2019.

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"I really enjoy umpire coaching, especially because I love being a role model and training up the new generation of umpires," Woolford said.

"It is awesome to see so many females joining and enjoying the umpiring community.

"It is such a great way to meet new people. Even when some games get a bit stressful, you know you have your friends there to make easier."

To learn more about umpiring or umpire coaching, you can visit the Umpire.AFL or Umpire AFLNT Facebook page.

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