MORE than 20 soccer teams hit the park over the weekend, most for the first time in more than a year.
Mildura City men’s coach Simon Trembath said the Sunraysia federation’s player numbers were strong going into the 2021 season.
“It was fantastic to see high numbers in our junior grades right up to seniors,” Trembath said.
“There were six reserve teams who competed on the weekend (in the KO competition) which was absolutely brilliant … those kind of numbers are always great for the sport as a whole.
“We know there are still some teams in the final stages of building a squad and we hope that will increase the numbers in some grades before round 1.
“It was a strong first week for the federation as a whole.”
And things were no different at Mildura City.
“Our club is looking strong in terms of player numbers,” Trembath said.
“It was always a bit of an unknown after the COVID-19 hiatus, seeing whether people would return.
“What we found is people who haven’t played in a few years have returned to the sport … and that’s the same with a lot of clubs, which is awesome.
“It was fantastic to see everyone back on the park after a long hiatus on the sidelines, for all teams … everyone really enjoyed the opportunity to compete against a variety of teams on the day.
“The weather was fantastic so it was a great start to the season for all grades, from juniors right through to seniors.
The format of the knockout competition changed this year to more of a lightning-style round-robin.
Trembath said this was a good move because it gave each team as many minutes on the park as possible.
“It also gives the opportunity for all clubs to play against a wide variety of opposition over the two weekends, in the lead-up to the season,” he said.
The Aerodrome Sporting Complex’s new changerooms debuted on Saturday and Trembath said they were “fantastic”.
“It meant clubs had designated changerooms but, more importantly, it meant we had facilities for our female teams,” he said.
“That’s something that’s been a long time coming and all clubs were really grateful for the improvements in the facilities.
“There was a lot of excitement and genuine happiness from everyone right across the day.
“We had a good turnout of spectators, and a number of families who stayed for the whole day to see the reserves and seniors play after their children played in the morning.
“It was a real tournament-like atmosphere … a lot of people stuck around which made for a great energy for the teams playing in the afternoon.”
