The Stan Original Documentary Trailblazers is an inspiring look into the world of the Matildas.

If you want to feel like you can take on the world, then you need to watch the Stan Original Documentary Trailblazers  ASAP.

Watching the documentary, I couldn't help but tear up while watching these astonishing women tell their stories. 

Trailblazers takes the viewer through the history of women's football and the hardships our national women's team had to go through in order to get to where they are now (spoiler: They're still not done). 

The documentary features the greats of Australian women's soccer and captures societal commentary on how they were perceived throughout history. 

Ex-players recounted experiences of having to fight for their right to play the game, from watching their brothers play and not being involved, to getting in trouble at school for playing with the boys to straight up being told that they're not allowed to take part. 

The documentary showcased how there was a point in history where women's football was actually on the rise. 

Then the men banned women from playing football. 

Take a look at the trailer for The Stan Original Documentary Trailblazers. 

The ban that caused international headlines was when England banned women from playing on their pitches in 1921. This had a domino effect across the world. 

In Australia, it was more of a cultural ban. There was an attitude bleeding throughout the sport that made women feel like they didn’t belong.  

According to our current women's football team, there was still a bias towards them when entering the football world, and this story is told so beautifully through Trailblazers.

One of the most surprising parts of the documentary was listening to the ex-players talk about all of the things they had to do in order to play the game. 

Not only did they have to pay to play, they also had to raise funds, stitch their own uniforms, personally convince people to attend and more. They also couldn't hold down a job to financially support themselves because that same job wouldn't be waiting for them if they had to leave to travel for a game.

"Here we are playing for Australia... but sometimes, it doesn't feel like that," player Julie Dolan said in the documentary. 

Julie Dolan. Image source: Stan.

Watching Trailblazers gave me a completely new perspective on women's football. 

Seeing the hardships ex-players had to go through was difficult but sadly not shocking. What was shocking, however, was seeing that our current players are still fighting obstacles. 

As the documentary shows, it was as recently as 2015 when The Matildas went on strike — The first National sporting team to do so. 

The strike was over a pay dispute, where their contracts were below minimum wage, resulting in the team not travelling to play against the US.  

At the time, the majority of the public went against the team's stance with the general consensus being that they should be lucky to be playing football at all. 

This was different from when the Socceroos (the national men's team) nearly went on strike and had the public's full support. 

In 2019, the Matildas became one of the only women's soccer teams to be granted equal pay to the men's team. Now, it's clear that our national women's football team have made, and is still making history. 

It was 2023 when Australia and New Zealand hosted the most recent FIFA Women's World Cup. It was literally all that everyone could talk about during that period of time. 

I was lucky enough to be able to watch the historic match between our Tillies and England. Although we didn't win, the atmosphere in the stadium and seeing the drive and strength of our team was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. 

Mary Fowler. Image source: Stan.

Over 11.5 million Australians watched that game — The biggest TV audience ever recorded in Australia’s history. Australia finished 4th which was the highest position for any senior team in a FIFA World Cup.

Now, our team are well and truly on their way to the Paris 2024 Olympics, coming this July, and will also be available to stream on Stan. 

I highly recommend watching Trailblazers right now in the lead-up to the Olympics, as it completely enriched my viewing and support as a new-ish football fan. 

I've always loved the Matildas, but this documentary has taken that love and transformed it into a newfound respect and gratitude towards both our current and past players for not only hitting national records but for breaking down the barriers when it comes to women's sports.

Created by an all-female production team, Trailblazers features past Matilda's legends including first captain Julie Dolan and current stars: Captain Sam Kerr, Vice-Captain Steph Catley, Mary Fowler, Ellie Carpenter, Teagan Micah, Melissa Barbieri, Kate Gill, and Moya Dodd.

Although we still have a long way to go as a society in regards to gender equality in sports, watching Trailblazers is a great start to forming an understanding of how it's much more than just a game to these women.

The Stan Original Documentary Trailblazers is now streaming, only on Stan.

Feature image: Stan.