Historically, the Goulburn and Murray regions have been known for food, farming and football. Last week, it’s the latter that took the focus, as Essendon’s AFLW team visited the region as part of its Community Camp.

The first order of proceedings was to visit to the Munarra Centre in Shepparton, where Dixie Pattern delivered a moving Welcome to Country and Smoking Ceremony.

Players then took part in an interactive dance session with Yorta Yorta women’s dance group Galnya Yenbena. With deep themes of culture, community and connection, it set the tone for the next 24 hours.

A third of the playing group stayed in Shepparton, while the others went to Echuca and Cobram for their respective school and football club visits.

For the Shepparton group, it was an all-girls Auskick and autograph session before Shepparton United takes its name in the most literal sense, hosting fellow Goulburn Valley Football League clubs the Shepparton Swans and Tatura Bulldogs for a joint training session involving their women’s and youth girls teams.

Essendon players help run the skills and drills session and provide valuable feedback to the players.

The back-to-back sessions provided a glimpse into the present and future of football in the region, with growing female participation and now genuine pathways to the highest level.

On Thursday morning, the agenda was all about school visits. Group one consisted of Stephanie Caine, Zoe Prowse, Chloe Adams and Stephanie Wales. The group's first stop is St Brendan's Primary School for a question-and-answer session and kick-to-kick with the Foundation to Grade 2 students. As the players introduced themselves, Caine, who began her AFLW career in the league's inaugural season in 2017, jokes that she has been in the league longer than the students have been alive.

Despite their young age, the students' questions are sharp and thought provoking. A grade one student asks, 'What is your favourite thing about playing football?'

'The friendships and people you meet, being healthy and having fun,' Wales responded with.

The response was brought to life ten minutes later, when more than 100 students head to the oval for a kick-to-kick session with the players.

The school is a vibrant, multicultural community, with families from across Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Europe.

At times, the football itself takes a back seat to conversations, shared jokes, impromptu dance moves and demonstrations of goal celebrations. Yet those moments and genuine interactions with the players are often just as important as any formal skills coaching.

Community and connection emerge as a constant and organic theme throughout the day, reflecting the very purpose of the trip.

The next stop is Congupna Primary School. With a cohort of just 90 students, the entire school took part in the session.

Co-captain, Caine is attuned to her surroundings. As the group walked through the corridors towards the football oval, she took in the details of the school and its classrooms.

When a student asks, 'What motivates you?”' she responded without hesitation, drawing on the school’s values of kindness, bravery and curiosity.

'I like the value of curiosity,' she said. 'It’s important we always continue to learn and keep getting better.'

During the kick-to-kick session, Adams is a bundle of energy. At just 20 years of age, visits like those hold a special significance for her. Growing up in the Geelong region, she was once that student sitting in the classroom, listening to athletes share their stories. She understands first-hand the impact those moments can have, particularly in small regional communities.

The third and final stop was St Luke’s Primary School, where the group spent time with the senior students. They are inquisitive and their questions are thoughtful and creative, extending beyond football and into the players’ lives away from the game.

They are intrigued by their careers and interests outside of football, which for this playing group spans a diverse range of industries including education, horticulture, construction and fitness.

When asked about their favourite football moments, the answers reflect the different experiences that have shaped their careers. For Prowse, it is winning and the opportunity to 'celebrate with 30 of your closest friends.' Having joined the Bombers only last December from the Adelaide Crows, she already seems right at home in the red and black, and well on her way to finding those same friendships at her new club.

For Wales, the standout moment was running out at Marvel Stadium and defeating Hawthorn, coincidentally her twin sister’s side, in Essendon’s inaugural AFLW game.

What began as backyard contests between sisters had finally reached the game's biggest stage and was a moment that reflected years of dedication, encouragement and healthy competition.

One student asks, 'If (YouTuber) Mr Beast was to give you $1 million to stop playing football, would you do it?'

While it may have been a throwaway question, the response from both the stage and the audience is telling. Wales immediately leads a unanimous chorus of 'No way.'

The answer reflects something much bigger than football. It represents a generation of female athletes who are proving that sport can be a profession, a passion and a place to belong. These players are not just competing on the field; they are showing the next generation what is possible.

It is a reminder that participation pathways begin with moments like these; a conversation, a curiosity, a connection.

Sport can be bigger than the game itself.