By Ashleigh Matosevic
Sports Journalist
For many soccer players, the appeal of the sport is found in its many rituals: the familiar rhythm of stepping onto the field, completing warm-ups, and the feeling of camaraderie that comes with being a part of a sporting club.
Yet for Naomi Cornejo these moments are overshadowed by concerns off the field, like safety and accessibility.
At Hansen Reserve in West Footscray, the journey from the soccer pitch to the toilets is a 750 metre walk.
“During training at night, we have to walk in the dark. Some areas have very limited lighting, and there’s a public park directly beside the change rooms. As a woman, I don’t feel safe making that walk alone, especially at night,” Cornejo tells The Westsider.
“No player should have to choose between their safety and using the bathroom.”
“I have endometriosis, which causes heavy periods and significant pain. So having quick access to a bathroom is really important. Instead, I have to leave the playing area and walk a long distance just to access a toilet,” she says.
Adding to the problems she says each change room has only one toilet cubicle, with urinals and showers located in the same small space.
“We’re often lining up to use the only toilet which is regularly dirty, outdated and not fit for the number of people using it. There are also no sanitary bins available, which is a necessity for female players,” she says.
Cornejo says the bathroom also floods with sewerage every couple of weeks, making them unpleasant, and at times, unusable.
Cornejo, who plays for the Footscray Rangers, is among many who have had to adapt to the current conditions of the suburban oval. The North Footscray Football Club and the Yarraville Club Cricket Club also use the facilities.
Hansen Reserve had been slated for major upgrades following the Council’s master plan announced in 2023. While some improvements were made Council has paused the redevelopment of the pavilion funding for the upgrades were deferred indefinitely.
Footscray Rangers President Nathan Mclean says he’s “disappointed” about the deferment of funds for the pavilion redevelopment.
“I chose to believe that [the council] made a funding promise that they would look to meet it. So when that didn’t happen, I was bitterly disappointed, and that’s a feeling that’s reflected across the entirety of the club,” Mclean says.
Council has opted to defer the project in order to invest in waterparks and other projects but McLean says that’s particularly disappointing as those projects have not been in the works for as long as the proposed pavilion.
One of the immediate benefits of an upgraded pavilion would be additional storage space. Mclean explains that the club currently pays a local warehouse $70,000 a year to access a shipping container for storage.
Despite the arrangement, storage is still limited. “It just can’t support the needs of a thousand people. It’s so inaccessible. It’s dark, there’s shelving and heaps of things that are not available,” Mclean says.
“It’s a real tragedy. Coaches with cerebral palsy for example. They just can’t access the space. So we’ve reduced and capped the size of our programs.”
McLean says the club has been advocating for changes since 2017.
Maribyrnong City Council Mayor Cr Mohamed Semra says the pavilion “remains a priority”, and council is “continuing to look for funding opportunities” and will “review the project” during the next budget process.
“Due to competing project priorities, the pavilion upgrade has been delayed. To reduce the impact on sporting clubs who use Hansen Reserve, we will be installing temporary facilities at the reserve before the end of the year.”
“In the meantime, we’re working with contractors to address issues caused by users of the current pavilion,” he says.
But Naomi Cornejo remains disheartened.
“Community sport is about more than what happens on the field. It is about creating a place where people feel they belong, and the current facilities make that more difficult than it should be,” she says.
“These issues affect more than just convenience. They affect player safety, accessibility, inclusion and the overall experience of being part of the club.”
