Bendigo: Club exodus compared ‘absolute tragedy’ of Echuca and Rochester leaving says former board chairman

A key player in previous bids to entice Gisborne into the Ballarat league says the club has even stronger grounds to move. See the latest.

A driving force behind previous foiled bids to recruit Gisborne into the Ballarat league believes the move “makes even more sense” now based on a rapidly changing landscape in the club’s present home.

Bendigo successfully headed off raids on Gisborne including a 2009 pitch that included home finals, discounts on umpiring fees and a first-up home match against former Riddell District league rival, Sunbury.

But former Ballarat league chief executive Rod Ward said the departures of Kyneton and Maryborough in back-to-back seasons from Bendigo meant Gisborne should be granted its wish to move at the end of this year.

“I’ve always felt Gisborne was a great fit for the eastern clubs in the Ballarat league,” he said.

“I respected their desire to stay in the Bendigo league because they were very successful.

“But diminishing numbers in the Bendigo league makes all the sense in the world for them to look at Ballarat.

“They will have four very close neighbours and draw big crowds.

“Financially, clubs need money to survive.”

Former Ballarat league chief executive Rod Ward.

Gisborne is more than an hour from the Queen Elizabeth Oval where all Bendigo league finals are played compared to Sunbury, Melton, Bacchus Marsh and Darley all being within 30 minutes.

Former Bendigo chairman Jock Clark said: “Losing Kyneton, Maryborough and Gisborne in the space of three years would be akin to when Echuca and Rochester left in the 1970s.

“It was an absolutely tragedy”.

Last week, Gisborne presented its case to join the Ballarat’s 10 club presidents ahead of a special general meeting next month to formally vote on accepting the Bulldogs.

Sunbury president Adam Maxwell said Gisborne’s addition would be “beneficial to everyone in the competition, not just the eastern clubs”.

“We would be rapt to be playing them again like we did in the old Riddell league days,” he said.

“If we don’t expand we could end up like the Bendigo league.

“With football today, money and finances are so important.

“We still have some reasonable games against Darley, Melton and Bacchus Marsh, but the practice match with Gisborne is right up there as one of our biggest.

“It’s bigger for Gisborne than us.

“But if that is a home and away match it will be huge.”

Gisborne lost to Sandhurst in last year’s Bendigo league grand final. Picture Yuri Kouzmin

Ballarat Swans president Paul Lightfoot said Gisborne “presented really well” at last week’s meeting with members of his club to have their say soon on whether the Bulldogs should come in.

“They answered the questions of the presidents in the room,” he said.

“We will put it to our members and make a decision based on that.

“It’s not a yes and it’s not a no at this stage.

“From the best we can tell they are a strong club and are a good club.

“We’re far from a no, but we would just like a bit more information.”

The Ballarat league lost Melton South to the Riddell District league and went from 16 rounds to 18 with every club playing each other twice.

Ballarat has retained its top-six finals structure despite having one less club.

Originally published as Bendigo: Club exodus compared ‘absolute tragedy’ of Echuca and Rochester leaving says former board chairman