We aim to tell the public-interest stories that matter to readers.
But we don’t always get it right.
Today’s Serve column will hopefully be the start of a conversation that can help shape our sports coverage this year.
A reader survey, if you like.
As part of my journalism degree, I studied a few public-relations units.
If there were two words that summed the year of PR study, it was “be proactive”.
I know that most sports in Sunraysia are volunteer-run, but there’s no reason why this practice can’t be adopted, particularly by league and club presidents or the publicity officers.
Those sports that have a good working relationship with the media will see the benefits of it.
By contrast, those who sit back and complain about a lack of coverage only have themselves to blame.
Last week I looked at the growing sports and those holding steady or in decline.
Basketball is the boom sport, both locally and nationally.
The Mildura Heat’s basketball coaches and most of their players are media savvy and do very well at maintaining relationships with Sunraysia Daily reporters, including myself.
Heat women’s coach James Madigan is a reporter’s dream.
He is always available to the media with considered, sometimes colourful comments, and rarely an interview goes by when he doesn’t sign off with a “thank you for your support”.
The majority of local football and netball coaches and players are very similar.
They appreciate the exposure their respective sports receive in the leading newspaper in north-west Victoria.
I guarantee the first SFNL grand-final day at Mildura Sporting Precinct wouldn’t have attracted the 7500-plus crowd without the lead-up coverage in the Daily.
Some of the other sports that are in decline, based on their participation rates, should not see the media as an enemy.
Rather, we can help boost the profile of those sports and bring key issues, such as outdated infrastructure, to light.
But we need the assistance of all sports given our limited resources, including story leads and results.
So, here is your chance to provide some feedback.
What is it that you like about our sports coverage, and what do you think we can do better?
Should we be running more pictures?
Would you like to see more results?
Your feedback would be much appreciated. Feel free to email me at mtaylor@sunraysiadaily.com.au.
MISSILE’S CUP QUEST
“THE Mildura Missile” will be hunting more Group 1 harness-racing glory in tonight’s prestigious A.G. Hunter Cup at Melton.
Bargain-buy Major Meister, whose connections are based in north-west Victoria, should be forgiven for its last-start flop in the Ballarat Cup after drawing a tough back-row draw and being forced to race in the death.
Before then, Major Meister showed enormous improvement in winning the Group 1 Cranbourne and Group 2 Bendigo cups.
The best pacers will be lining up in tonight’s $500,000 Hunter Cup, for which bookies have the Missile as a $17 outsider.
Unfortunately, the Art Major gelding has drawn out in the carpark again, but we need to keep the faith that driver Cam Hart can pull the right rein in getting our bloke home.
Kiwi star Copy That will be hard to beat, but if the Jason Grimson-trained Major Meister sees daylight within sight of the leader in the final lap, just watch him zoom home.
PORT OF CALL
THE draw came out this week for the 2023 Big V basketball season, with the Mildura Heat men’s and women’s teams playing their first home games on Saturday, March 25.
The round 2 clashes at the Hothouse will be against Craigieburn, who finished last in the 2022 Division 1 women’s competition, while their men were placed seventh in Division 2, two spots higher than the Heat.
A cracking encounter looms in round 3 on April 1, when the Heat women are at home to Western Port, who pulled off a shock finals win against James Madigan’s team in 2022.
There’ll be no home-team April fools on court for this mouth-watering encounter.
The tenacious Mildura women will want to make a big early-season statement as they set about exorcising a few demons from last year.
IT’S ODDS-ON, DON
I HAD a bit of a double-take during last Saturday’s horse-racing coverage on Channel Seven as a familiar face bobbed up.
Don Harley was doing his best to keep punters informed where the money was going as he read out the pre-race markets for the TAB.
Harley was previously general manager for the Mildura Sporting Precinct (March 2021-April 2022) and AFL Sunraysia (February 2020-March 2021).
