What Northern NSW Football Pride round means to Newcastle Olympic player Georgia Amess

But it is not the case for everyone.

That is why the Newcastle Olympic winger and gay woman is thrilled to be part of Northern NSW Football's inaugural Pride round this weekend.

"It's so exciting and good to see," Amess told the Newcastle Herald.

"It's a shame that it's taken so long, but at the end of the day it's still a step forward to show that it is OK to be whoever you want to be, and it's a great way to showcase the equality and the inclusion for everyone in our sport."

NNSWF are following in the Matildas' and Football Australia's footsteps.

In February, the A-Leagues introduced its Pride round to coincide with WorldPride 2023 and the Matildas proudly donned Pride-coloured playing numbers on the backs of their jerseys during their Cup of Nations clash with Spain in Sydney.

"We've got the Matildas leading the charge," Amess said.

"I read somewhere on social media that years ago when there was media coverage for the Matildas there was no mention of their significant others, and now it's all over the whole Matildas documentary series.

"Katrina Gorry had a child on her own but is also gay and has a female partner then you've got Sam [Kerr] and her partner. It's just great to see it normalised, even though it shouldn't need to be normalised."

The aim of Pride round is to celebrate and support LGBTIQ+ members of the community with a commitment to diversity and inclusion.

Clubs across NNSWF are being encouraged to acknowledge they are providing a safe place for all of their members.

This could be through displaying rainbow flags or bunting around their grounds, wearing pride socks or pride armbands, or making ground announcements recognising the round.

"Sport is usually a safe space for somebody to go and express themselves," Amess said.

"Pride round helps encourage that. It promotes inclusivity in our sport and shows everyone we need to show up as a community, and that's what these rounds are about."

Amess, who is engaged to professional surfer Sarah Baum, came out to family and friends in her teenage years.

"I've had a very positive experience in terms of my coming out story and being accepted for who I am," Amess said.

"I've never really had any negative comments thrown directly at me, but I know that there have been other comments made to other people.

"It's super positive to have a round like this to recognise that everyone is included in this sport and there is a safe space for everyone in sport.

"Another thing is for other codes of sport to see that soccer and football are doing these Pride rounds, because there are so many sports that probably follow too much of the gender bias. I know for Sarah in surfing, it took a long time for her to be comfortable with who she is within her own sport.

"As athletes, if you're not comfortable in your own skin, you're not going to be able to perform to the best of your ability."

Amess is playing her fourth season with Olympic, who share equal footing with Broadmeadow atop the NPLW Northern NSW standings on 32 points.

They are second by goal difference but should bank three points against winless Warners Bay in round 15 at Darling Street Oval on Saturday while Magic face a much tougher task against New Lambton, who are vying to keep alive their top-four hopes.

"We've swapped and changed a few starting formations and I think [coach] Neil [Owens] has finished up doing that now," Amess said.

"So we're really locking in towards the back end of the season. We're really starting to gel with some nice combinations. This is definitely the strongest we've been over the last couple of years, even though we did win the premiership a couple of years ago.

"We've got so much depth this year and anyone can play anywhere now. If we just keep doing the simple things right, we're going to be a very strong team."

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