Get to know some of our Women & Girls Umpire Liaisons:
Brooke Kimber
Region: North West Tasmania
Number of years umpiring: 1 year as Boundary Umpire. Excited and ready to transition to Field for 2025.
What got you into umpiring: Ultimately, a come and try session I saw advertised. I have always had a passion for the game so I turned up with my best foot forward and have never looked back.
What do you love about umpiring? The Camaraderie with fellow umpires, self-development and fitness. also, the opportunities and pathways umpiring has opened up for me.
Abbie Genders
Region: North West Tasmania
Number of years umpiring: 5
What got you into umpiring: After watching my brother actually enjoy his first year of umpiring, I decided to give it a try. From my very first game I was completely blown away by the amount of kindness and support I received, and immediately wanted to do it again.
What do you love about umpiring? The community is so welcoming and I’ve become friends with such a diverse range of people who I may not have otherwise known. It doesn't matter who you are or what your experience is because when we walk out onto the field as a team, we do so as equals.
Tanya Littlely
Region: Great Southern
Number of years umpiring: 1
What got you into umpiring? I used to drive my son to boundary umpire training and run around the oval with the umpires for kicks while I was waiting to take him home. Eventually the crew talked me into signing up!
What do you love about umpiring? It’s forced fitness… I’m lazy and would never run around an oval for the sole purpose of keeping fit, and if I did I would stop the minute I felt any discomfort. But when you are umpiring you can’t just stop - you have to keep up! And the game distracts you from thinking about how far you’ve run. It’s an excellent kind of running because it’s sometimes fast… sometimes slow…sometimes backwards… sideways… in heat… in cold… I also love the support I get from my local club – they’re always razzing me up and cheering me on from the sidelines, which is fun.
If you’re interested in taking up a Liaison position, speak with your umpiring leader and your state or territory umpiring lead.