THE magnificent autumn weather has delivered some ideal conditions for all winter sports to kick off their seasons.
The crowd sizes for the opening two rounds of the SFNL and Millewa football and netball competitions have been very good.
I marvel at the hard-working club volunteers on game days.
It’s an all-day production that accommodates junior players and their families in the morning, before the next wave of people come through for the senior netball grades, and then the senior footy from 2.30pm.
Football and netball have the two highest participation rates of sport in Sunraysia.
But it’s the high levels of crowd support that has really struck me over the past fortnight.
I had a brilliant day covering the netball and footy at George Gordon Oval last Saturday.
What a terrific sporting facility this is.
And it’s only going to get better, according to Roos president Ricky Rowe.
There are plans to put in seating on the grassed area in between the main netball court, where the A-graders play, and the footy oval.
The change rooms next to the netball courts are also set for an extension towards the second oval in the coming months.
I love the professionalism in Roo land.
It’s little wonder that the club’s netball and footy teams have been performing so well in recent seasons.
The foundations for this success have been laid off the field, and I congratulate Ricky and his committee.
A MEGA CHANCE
THERE’S a whisper that the Millewa football and netball “Mega Day” will be held at Mildura Sporting Precinct on Saturday, May 27.
This would mean it’d move from its traditional home of Lake Cullulleraine, but it would present a mega opportunity to showcase the league closer to Mildura.
It’s understood that new Millewa Football League president Gary Simpson is finalising plans with Mildura Council for the MSP move.
Meanwhile, there’s been no word through yet on whether a long-overdue merger between Millewa football and netball, along with Sunraysia women’s footy, is any closer to happening.
This is something that makes sense and it’d be great to see it signed off as soon as possible.
REP FOOTY PUSH
PLANS are under way to make the Millewa versus Mallee Tigers representative game an annual fixture.
On the heels of the successful Dreamtime at the P, where the Millewa rep side was revived after more than a decade in the wilderness against the Tigers in footy and netball, it would be an absolute winner to make this happen.
Equally, steps should be taken to lock in an annual pre-season home fixture for the Sunraysia rep footy and netball teams.
The region’s elite players have embraced rep footy again and that momentum needs to be carried forward on a local level.
It’s likely that Sunraysia will play the Central Australia Redtails in Alice Springs next year, but local fans want to see the best of the best in their own backyard each year.
NEW Q&A SERIES
YOU’LL notice a new “In the Changeroom” Q&A on this page throughout the SFNL season.
I love these quirky Q&As where you learn about what players are like off the field.
If you want to know more about your favourite footballer or netballer, let me know who they are and one of our reporters will try to quiz them on game day.
