An East Belfast grassroots football club has recorded an incredible increase in girls' participation since emerging from lockdown.
Dungoyne FC is a club steeped in history, but the success of its young female teams has only started to emerge in the past couple of years.
The club now supports teams across seven age groups, ranging from four years old to early teens.
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Coach Ashleigh Cowan is delighted at the uptake, and insists the club hopes to expand even further in the months ahead.
"We had one girls' team that started up just before Covid. That was 2009 and 2010 age groups," Ashleigh said.
"The intention was to then roll out teams of similar age groups to the boys, but then the pandemic hit and all those plans stalled.
"When we started returning from Covid, it was just about getting everyone back to football who had been here before. We didn't want to leave anyone behind because we knew people had gone through some hard times.
"So we tried to get everyone back who had been here before, and the idea of starting up new teams sort of fell by the wayside a little bit.
"Then last summer we decided the time was right to get the girls' teams moving on a wee bit. So we put out an advert for 2011 and 2012 girls, just to see if there was any interest.
"By the second week we had 20 kids which was brilliant.
"In the space of a year we now have girls' teams from 2009 right down to 2017, which is four and five-year-olds. It aligns with the boys' teams, and we actually have two nine-a-side teams in the 2012 age group."
Ashleigh says the club tapped into the success of the Northern Ireland women's team who played at this summer's Euro finals.
It was an historic moment for football here as Kenny Shiels' side qualified for the country's first-ever major tournament.
"Obviously the success of the Northern Ireland women's team helped, and when we set up the teams we made a point of going to all the matches and watch football," Ashleigh said.
"And one of the things I thought was lovely was that the girls were comparing themselves to the international players, saying things like, 'that's just like you'.
"So we went to every single one of the qualifying matches that were at home and they loved it."
As well as offering girls' football in the area, Ashleigh says many parents have praised the club for helping develop the social skills of the kids.
"It just shows you the demand that is there for girls' football. Even locally I don't think there are many clubs with a girls' section. You will find the girls end up playing in the boys' teams," she added.
"And I think that can be a bit off-putting for them.
"The amount of parents saying the difference football has made to their daughter, even with things such as anxiety after Covid and going back to school full-time.
"A lot of them are at an age where they are doing exams and moving on to secondary school, and the difference in the girls when they step onto the pitch has been incredible.
"Even girls who live on the same street but never bothered with each other, now they are friends. It has really taken off.
"And it is more than just football and sport, there is a big social aspect to it."
Ashleigh's own work at Dungoyne was rewarded earlier this year when she was named Wes Gregg Regional Coach of the Year.
A number of parents nominated her for the prestigious award and she admits it was a "massive surprise".
She added: "I had a missed call from Stephen Garrett from the Irish FA who asked me to call back and I thought 'oh no'. I didn't expect it at all.
"It makes it all worthwhile when you see the difference the club is having on the young girls, and their families.
"It is a real community club, and Dungoyne means so much to so many people in the area.
"And there are different generations coming through the club which is nice."
Ashleigh added: "We are always looking for new players so anyone interested can contact us on our Facebook page.
"We always have spaces and we are trying to get as many girls' teams as possible.
"We are currently trying to recruit 2008 girls at the minute, which is one of the older age groups.
"The aim is to then have a filter club for our girls to progress to, like the boys do with Dundela."
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