Football NSW proposes opening soccer fields for Covid vaccination hubs

Football NSW has proposed opening up empty soccer fields for pop-up vaccination hubs.

The state’s biggest soccer association is geared up to give Covid-19 the boot.

Football NSW is offering up empty fields across Sydney for mass vaccination hubs and reaching out to culturally diverse communities with multilingual messages to ease vaccine anxieties.

For the campaign, the organisation has released a video spoken in 12 different languages to prompt migrant and non-English speaking communities to get the jab.

Bonora siblings Dylan and Lilly are keen for people to get vaccinated so they can get back to playing soccer. Picture: Tim Hunter

It stars a handful of high-profile members of the soccer family including former NSW Premier turned football director Morris Iemma, former Socceroos coach Les Schienflug as well as prominent NSW born footballers and coaches Peter Tsekenis, John Paul de Marigny and Alen Stajcic.

“Football is such a wonderful, multicultural sport where we touch every community. It has such a massive reach and many people involved in football are leaders in their communities, so we want to do whatever we can to help get the government’s messages out there,” Football NSW CEO Stuart Hodge said. “Everybody was more than willing to contribute.”

Former NSW Premier turned football director Morris Iemma features on a Football NSW video promoting Covid vaccinations.

Soccer players Lilly and Dylan Bonora. Picture: Tim Hunter.

Football NSW has proposed to transform its home soccer ground Valentine Sports Park in Glenwood into a mass vaccination facility to help the government tackle the coronavirus and the deadly Delta variant gripping NSW.

“We’re hopeful that the government will be able to use not only Valentine Sports Park but other sporting facilities that community clubs have offered,” Mr Hodge said.

“Many people in the community are used to going to the local football club, and if we make that available, it might make it easier for people to access vaccinations.”

The Bonora siblings Dylan, 11, and Lilly, 9, from Blacktown are keen for people to get vaccinated so they can get back to playing with their friends, their mother Clare Bonora said.

“The kids listen to Gladys every morning and they just want everyone who can get vaccinated, to get vaccinated.

“They want to get back to playing with their friends and having fun,” Ms Bonora said.