Australia’s most controversial soccer team has won its grand final after going through the season undefeated.
Sydney-based Flying Bats FC made headlines around the world earlier this year after it was revealed that five of the women’s team’s players were transgender.
The team’s presence in the women’s competition sparked complaints from club officials and parents, while high-profile figures such as JK Rowling and Lucy Zelic also criticised their participation.
And now it can be revealed that the team have capped off an unbeaten season in the Women’s Premier League in which they have won all 16 of their regular season games while scoring 65 goals and conceding just four in the process by winning the grand final on Sunday.
Zelic posted the scoreboard on the pitch with the final score of 5-4 over West Pennant Hills Cherrybrook Football Club, expressing his disappointment with the result.
‘Full time. Flying Bats FC wins Premier League and Grand Final. Players who identify as trans will be crowned champions in the Women’s Premier League Division,’ she posted with the hashtag #SaveWomenSports.
“Somehow this is supposed to represent progress. Somewhere, the gatekeepers of our game don’t care.”
The Flying Bats soccer team had five transgender players this season in a women’s league
The Flying Bats, represented in red, black and rainbow colors, were undefeated throughout the season.
One of the Flying Bats players received a yellow card in their tense grand final victory over West Pennant Hills Cherrybrook Football Club
The game took place at 3 p.m. at Christie Park with security guards on site, discouraging the use of professional photography equipment and checking people’s phones for images taken of the match.
The score was tied 3-3 at halftime before the Flying Bats made a series of changes and pulled away in the second half.
One of the transgender players received a yellow card during the match, while a transgender player was named best on the ground after the tight finish.
Football NSW has removed the identities of the Flying Bats players from its websites. Daily Mail Australia has chosen not to reveal their identities.
West Pennant Hills’ Cherrybrook Football Club fought hard in the match but went down in heartbreaking fashion by a single goal.
West Pennant Hills Cherrybrook Football Club and Flying Bats players shake hands after the grand final
Flying Bats players celebrate their controversial win over West Pennant Hills Cherrybrook Football Club in the Women’s Premier League Grand Final.
Defeated West Pennant Hills Cherrybrook Football Club posted a comment describing the defeat as “heartbreaking” and praising their players for pushing the Flying Bats all the way.
“Our Premier League Women’s team left it all at Christie Park this afternoon as they lost 5-4 in heartbreaking fashion to the Flying Bats,” the club posted on Facebook.
“You embodied everything it means to play for our club for 90 incredible minutes of football. We couldn’t be more proud of you girls.”
2GB’s Ben Fordham previously revealed that six of the team’s wins came as a result of the opposing team losing, including both semi-final matches that saw them advance to the final.
Earlier this year, it was reported that the sport’s governing bodies had told clubs they would be punished if they lost their games against the Bats.
“Remember, it’s a women’s competition and they have five (transgender) players, and we have some people trying to say ‘it doesn’t make any difference,’ really?” she said on Thursday morning’s show.
Zelic, a vocal critic of the team, responded to their successful season by calling it a “crime against women.”
Sydney-based soccer team Flying Bats reached the grand final of the women’s competition after sparking controversy for fielding five transgender players.
The Flying Bats went the entire season undefeated to claim the title in the final.
“I think this is a real crime against women… it’s quite shameful,” she said.
‘The fact that these women have been left without a voice in this matter, and if they have one, are being punished for it, is something that needs to be explored very deeply.
‘Imagine having to do that too? To get to the knockout stages of the competition… it takes a lot of courage in this situation to stand up and say “no, we’re not going to play”. Both Putney Rangers and Macquarie Dragons deserve credit for that.’
Zelic then pointed the finger at governing bodies for what he claimed was a dereliction of duty.
“The people I hold responsible here, and who I consider the most villainous, are the national sporting organisations, the ones who have yet to act to introduce policies to protect women and girls, who are the real culprits and responsible for allowing this circus to continue,” she added.
“These are the people we really need to call out and ask for answers. I want to know why these women’s voices are not being heard. It’s not right.”
On Flying Bats’ official website, they state that they are “the largest LGBTQIA+ female and non-binary football club in the world.”
Club president Jennifer Peden told Daily Mail Australia in April: “As a club, Flying Bats FC strongly advocates for inclusion and we pride ourselves on a safe, respectful and fair game, fostering a supportive community for LGBTQIA+ players, referees and supporters, and the significant physical, social and mental health benefits that participation in sport brings, particularly to marginalised members of the LGBTQIA+ community. We are a club that values our cisgender and transgender players equally.
‘We strongly support the Australian Human Rights Commission’s guidelines for the inclusion of transgender and gender diverse people in sport.’
Australian Human Rights Commission guidelines, which NSW Football aligns with, do not allow sporting organisations to discriminate on the basis of a player being transgender.
The guidelines state that under the Federal Sex Discrimination Act of 1984, sports organizations cannot discriminate against transgender players either directly or indirectly.
“An example of direct discrimination would be if a sports organisation refused a trans woman’s application for membership because she is transgender,” the guidelines state.
‘An example of indirect discrimination could be a sports organization requiring a birth certificate upon registration and not accepting any alternative form of documentation to verify a person’s gender.’
Football NSW has developed a Gender Diversity Policy but it only applies to the NPL NSW Women’s Competition, the FNSW League One Women’s Competition and the FNSW Girls’ Youth League One Competition.
The Women’s Premier League in which the Flying Bats compete is not covered by this policy, but Football NSW says these competitions would align with Football Australia’s adoption of the Australian Human Rights Commission Guidelines.
“Under which community (grassroots) players are allowed to participate in football based on the gender with which they identify,” Football NSW’s website states.
Lucy Zelic called the team’s successful season a “crime against women”
“These guidelines, along with the Sex Discrimination Act, inform Football Australia, Football NSW and the North West Sydney Football Association’s gender inclusion policies at the community, grassroots level where we play,” Peden continued.
‘Trans women belong in the women’s competition because that is the gender they identify with. Trans women have played with the club for at least 20 years, at levels ranging from beginner to expert, just like our cis players.
‘Our players are rated based on their ability and placed on the team that is most appropriate for their skill level and experience.’
The Facebook group LGBTI Rights Australia posted a message congratulating the team shortly after winning the Beryl Ackroyd Cup and criticised the team’s critics.
“Transgender women have proudly been part of the bats for 20 YEARS, but it took the Nazis until this week to notice,” the message read.
‘This highlights that the problem is not transgender athletes, but the exploitation of sport for political gain.
‘Congratulations to Flying Bats football club, who recently won the Beryl Ackroyd Cup! (And to all the complaining transphobes, we suggest you train a bit harder.)’