Coronavirus a real test for country sporting clubs

COMMUNITY sport across the state continues to face many challenges and although the government’s announcement this week about the relaxing of social distancing laws was welcome news, we’re yet to see the full impact of COVID-19.

It’s great to finally have something positive to pin our hopes to, but my concern is the long-term damage to country sporting clubs.

We all know about the impact the virus has had on elite sport and the financial fallout, but what about sport at the grassroots level?

My biggest worry is how clubs will recover from the imposed layoff.

The reality is things might not be what they were before.

In business, sport and even life for that matter, momentum plays an important role in success – take away the momentum and see what happens.

It’s good and well to say by cancelling the season you are limiting the financial impact on clubs, but what is the long-term damage by not playing?

That’s the question I’m still grappling with.

I fully understand the reasoning behind the decision taken by many community sports – in particular football and netball – across the state not to play without crowds and support them, but I wonder how this will impact on participation and if it will provide some players and sponsors an excuse to pull their support of their local club – I hope not, but it’s a distinct possibility.

The reality hit home for me this week when I spoke to my old man for our weekly phone catch-up.

Normally this time of year he’d be filling me in on how the local footy was going, but last weekend he delivered me with a bombshell that the club my family has been involved with for three generations, King Valley, was thinking of folding because of the impact the coronavirus pandemic was having on player numbers and their financial viability.

Now plenty out there would think that’s a bit of a cop out and an excuse for a club which was struggling anyway just to pull the pin, but not the case.

Anyone who is familiar with the King Valley area will know it’s a bustling little community built around boutique wineries and restaurants, but it relies on drawing its players from outside the district and also many of its supporters who travel from Wangaratta and other surrounding areas.

Over the past few years the seniors have played finals regularly, they’ve won a couple of reserves premierships – it has always been tough getting players, but they’ve been able to do it and would have again this year, but with it highly unlikely the Ovens and King Football Netball League will play in 2020.

This may be be their last year, sad, but a reality the locals are going to have to come to terms with.

I just hope none of the clubs in Sunraysia follow that path.

Football and netball clubs are the pulse of any community; without them we’d be lost.

It’s not just the game, it is the community spirit they provide which makes them such an important part of our social fabric and why we need to make sure our local clubs survive through this difficult time.

People might think I’m being a little bit dramatic thinking one of our local Millewa or SFNL clubs might fall over, but a few weeks ago I wouldn’t have thought King Valley would have been thinking about folding, but they are.