Like so many in women’s football, Lieutenant-Commander Liz Quinn wishes her birth certificate was dated a bit later.

“It’s unbelievable. I was born 10 years too early, I reckon,” she quips.

“It’s just absolutely amazing to see the opportunities that are available now to girls and women who love footy all over Australia.

“It’s really empowering, and it’s just so great to see so many little girls and women getting involved.”

But it’s not too late for Commander Quinn. For the football-loving native West Australian, a member of the navy since 2001 and deployed overseas four times, involvement in the game remains not just a possibility but a reality.

A long-time player for the Navy’s representative women’s footy side, Commander Quinn is in Melbourne this week as an assistant coach of a combined services outfit that takes on Richmond’s VFLW side at Punt Road as a curtain-raiser to Tuesday night’s Tiger-Demons match at the MCG.