Sturt Football Club fans to pitch in to pay for picket fence at Unley Oval

A FOOTY club in Adelaide’s east is asking its fans to buy the pickets it needs to build a controversial fence around the home-ground oval.

THE Double Blues are asking the public to help pay for a controversial picket fence around Unley Oval’s playing arena after the club was denied funding from the AFL and SANFL.

The club aims to raise $60,000 from sales of the pickets, complete with personalised, numbered plaques, at a cost of between $110 and $220 each, depending on location.

The club had applied to the AFL and SANFL for funding for the fence, but both grant requests were rejected.

Sturt’s facilities director David Reynolds said a similar project at Adelaide Oval had inspired the club to sell the pickets.

All plaques would be numbered. Some of the more significant numbers linked to Sturt greats, including 24 which was AFL Hall of Fame inductee Rick Davies and Magarey Medallist Damian Squire’s number, to be auctioned off later this month.

“We’re really excited about this and being able to recognise sporting greats at Unley Oval,” Mr Reynolds said.

Former Double Blue and AFL player John Halbert, also the president of Sturt Cricket Club, was keen to buy a picket.

“It’s high time we had a proper fence at the oval,” Mr Halbert said.

Unley Council will pay $30,000 towards the $90,000 fence.

Mr Reynolds said if the club made more than $60,000 from the sales, it would put the extra money into other upgrades, including $160,000 light towers and yet-to-be-costed revamped grandstands.

Unley Council voted in September to allow the football club to build the 90cm-high fence around the playing surface.

The decision followed years of debate on the proposal.

A report to the council found 91 of 228 of residents who responded to consultation were against fencing the playing arena.

The fence is likely to be built early next year.

The auction of significant pickets is at Barzaar, 166 Unley Rd, on Tuesday, November 18, from 6.30pm.