BUILD it and they will come.
That has certainly proven to be the case with the new Mildura Sporting Precinct and the game of basketball.
The Mildura Basketball Association summer season tipped off this week with a record 291 teams.
To put that number into context, that is 80 more teams than the winter season and equates to almost 2000 players hitting the courts each week.
On any measure, it suggests the sport is booming.
And it is not just basketball that has seen exceptional growth since the opening of the new precinct, with sports such as volleyball and netball also seeing an increase in participating numbers.
While there were fears that sports participation may not bounce back after COVID, the opposite seems to be playing out.
“We would like to take credit for delivering a great product, which I think we do, but I don’t think it is just because of that,” explained MBA director of participation and development Mahaela Jackson this week.
“From conversations I have had with netball, volleyball, there has been a jump in numbers since coming out of COVID.
“Obviously for us, it is a massive growth and the majority of it is juniors. Kids getting out there and getting active, that’s what it is about, and that is great for the health of our community.”
While the knockers of the Mildura Sporting Precinct always point to the massive cost, I would argue the cost of not providing great sporting facilities for your community is far greater from a health and wellbeing perspective.
It is essential. And the attraction of a new facility with all the trimmings has led to more kids getting off their screens and onto the courts.
What is that worth?
And the weight of numbers also points to how essential this project was for Mildura’s future.
As it stands, the old Hot House is basically booked out for junior and senior training every night of the week and on weekends. The MSP courts are booked solid by the user groups every night, with games running until 10pm such is the demand.
Jackson said the unprecedented growth had presented challenges for the MBA, not the least finding enough referees to officiate all the matches.
The MBA is running a green shirts program to build its referee pool, where good pocket money is there to be made.
MSP manager Chelsea Pettinau said there was growth across all indoor sports heading into the summer season.
“We had some forecast usage for summer but it has certainly gone past that, and all sports have had to wriggle and jiggle to find the court times,” Ms Pettinau said.
“Obviously basketball is the big one, but our numbers in volleyball is up, and they are also returning a social comp, badminton have doubled their usage which is a great outcome for their sport and we are also seeing constant casual usage with the badminton. People just pop in and book a net and have a hit around and we can accommodate that.
“That is a really good omen for squash when the courts completed.”
Four new squash courts will be constructed as part of stage two of the MSP, which is due for completion in mid-2023.
Ms Pettinau said people are enjoying being back involved in sport after COVID, and believed the new facility was a big part of the attraction.
“On balance all five nights we are firing six courts from 4pm to 9.30-10pm which is a great outcome,” she said.
“The weekends we get a good volume of casual use and through summer we will have netball on Saturday mornings and are also looking at some recreational indoor soccer and social netball, so it is all very exciting. We’re pumped.”
