Peta Searle played football for ten years in the Victorian State Women’s league, where she was named in the all Australian team three times. She then began her coaching career in 2005 with the Darebin Falcons and in 2006 she coached the first of her 5 successive premierships with the team. This led to her being awarded the Victorian Female Coach of the Year in 2010. In 2011 and 2013, she was the head coach of Victorian State Team in the AFL Women’s National Championships and was named the All Australian Coach in 2011. In 2012 she was an Assistant coach for the Port Melbourne men’s team, and in 2013 led the Western Bulldogs in the first ever AFL women’s exhibition game. In 2014 she joined the St Kilda Football club in the AFL as a development coach, making her the first full-time female assistant coach in the league’s history. Then In 2019, Searle was appointed the head coach of the St Kilda Football Club women’s team. In addition, Peta received the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in 2019.
