Welcome to Season 2021. Life during and after the pandemic has changed, perhaps forever. We continue to have to adjust our lifestyles and respond to protocols and lockdowns.
COVID has shaken up AFL from the very top down to the grass roots level. This has meant that our financial goals and targets have been delayed, but good administration has meant we have been able to maintain a sound financial position to move forward.
Membership, sponsorship and volunteers are crucial now, more than ever, to assist us to regain momentum.
It can be helpful however to pause and consider what we have achieved to date. Not just in the past few years, but where we stand as a club. Isaac Newton observed “If I have seen further, it’s because I have stood on the shoulders of giants”. I started my footy career as a 12 year old, where the clubrooms were a tin shed with no windows, dirt floors, no showers, and a thunderbox toilet! I know what it’s like to be part of a footy club with dirt floors and no showers. The facilities we enjoy today are the result of what dedicated and loyal (generations of) members have worked toward for us. These members have gone without luxuries (discounts and payment for their hours of toil for example) to provide today’s members with what you see around you. Consider what we are creating for our children and their children.
Despite what we have achieved to date, we are not resting on our laurels. We want to grow our club membership, cultivating our junior players and further developing women’s footy. We continue to display our rich history, remain a year-round social hub for our members, and we have plans to further enhance the interior and veranda decking. Increasing our facilities for women’s footy is an important consideration to explore. All this while of course chasing the premiership flag.
Our facilities enable us to generate revenue that supports our overall goal of sporting success. Recently, the women and the junior colts have represented us in the finals. Something that has been absent in the A, B & Senior Colts sides and which we are striving toward. Consistent on-field success takes more than just a bit of luck – it takes dedication, hard work, co-ordination and team work on and off the field to achieve.
In order to do this, we need your support. Every single individual who knows us, likes us, plays or spectates for our club has a role to play in helping us maximise what we have and build towards the future together. Borrowing from the All-Blacks, arguably one of the most successful sporting teams in history, we can all “leave our guernsey in a better place” for future generations – no matter what our role is within the club.
I invite everyone to come onboard and help us drive our club to further success on all fronts. Start by renewing your membership and consider what further contributions you can make – player, sponsor or volunteer in one of the many active roles required on game day and throughout the season. You can register your membership online via our website or using the hardcopy registration forms available over the bar.
Brenton Smith