2025 SANFL Volunteer of the Year Finalist – Jacinta Huxtable

3 October 2025

By ALEXANDRA BULL

Jacinta Huxtable’s connection to the Crystal Brook Football Club goes back to the 1980s, when she started playing netball for the Crystal Brook Netball and her brothers were active in the football side of things.

When her children started playing footy for Crystal Brook in 2009, she started to volunteer at the club.

“Being part of a regional club, volunteering is a big part of our community,” Jacinta said.

Now, Jacinta is the long-term secretary of Crystal Brook and is the lifeblood behind the Mid-North Women’s Football League as its co-founder.

“Over the years, I have been actively involved in the club and in 2014 I joined the committee. A couple of years later, I became the secretary and around that time, my daughter started expressing an interest in football, and I noticed that many young girls in our area felt the same way,” she said.

“However, there was a problem – girls could play up until the age of 15, but after that, they had no local options and would have to travel over two hours to Adelaide just to join a competition.

“With support from SANFL and Ian Lambert, I began working to gauge interest in creating a women’s competition closer to home. Within a few short months, we had enough players to form three junior teams and four senior teams.

This was the beginning of the Mid-North Women’s Football Competition (MNWFC), which officially launched in 2018.

A pioneer for women’s football in the mid-north of SA, Jacinta said one of the driving forces behind the creation of the MCWFC was the need for regional clubs to be more inclusive and offer opportunities for all players, regardless of gender.

“I’m proud of what we’ve built and the impact it’s had on the community,” Jacinta said.

“It’s been incredibly rewarding to see the competition develop, and I’m proud that we’ve been able to support so many female players – both young and not so young – to participate in the sport.”

The selfless volunteer who helps out in every facet of the Crystal Brook Football Club – whether it be catering, handling PlayHQ, supporting the canteen or organising player prizes – is the go-to person for any problems that arise at the Crystal Brook Football Club.

“Being part of the Crystal Brook Football Club and MNWFC has provided me with many opportunities to be involved in development, inclusion and growth of our club,” Jacinta said.

“To be able to give back to a club that supported my children when they were playing, seeing players grow in skills and develop leadership roles in a club that supports all players is rewarding.

“I enjoy being part of our great club that has some wonderful role models, not just for players but for our volunteers.”

Jacinta encouraged anyone involved in a footy club to step into volunteering.

“There are so many different duties that go into making game day a success, and the saying ‘many hands make light work’ couldn’t be more true,” she said.

“Anyone who’s been part of a regional or community football club knows that game day preparation isn’t just on the day – it starts in March and runs right through to September.

“Being part of that team effort is incredibly rewarding.”

Jacinta is one of eight finalists for the 2025 SANFL Volunteer of the Year Award, with the winner to be announced at the annual SANFL Community Volunteers Awards Night at Adelaide Oval on Friday, 31 October.