Wahgunyah, Port Fairy, Benalla highlight country footy’s challenges

Clubs across country Victoria are calling out for volunteers and players ahead of season 2022 as one president declared recruiting had become “league against league”.

Country footy clubs across Victoria are facing some of their biggest challenges since the pandemic began.

From desperate call outs for new players to an inability to fill volunteer positions some fear they are fighting for their future.

Not just in the short-term but permanently.

Tallangatta and District club Wahgunyah, which is based on the Murray River, had raised the prospect of going into recess for the 2022 season with players at an “all-time low”.

It led to club president Darryl Hore launching an impassioned plea for support via social media and the local newspaper.

He said the club has four opposition teams in three different leagues — the Hume, Ovens and Murray and Tallangatta competitions — within a 20km radius making it difficult to recruit.

“It’s no longer club against club, it’s league against league,” he said.

“Neighbouring competitions have a larger salary cap than ours which puts us in a really difficult position. Then if we look about 50km out you see Ovens and King and Murray league clubs come into play.

“If we want people to drive from Albury-Wodonga, which is about 30 minutes away, we’re asking them to drive past a few other clubs and that isn’t easy.

“We’re no longer in the days where local farmers might have had several kids to fill the footy and netball sides. People own much larger properties now and the kids aren’t around like they used to be because they go off to university or move away.”

Supplied Editorial Wahgunyah was fearing for its future. Photo: Facebook.

Since announcing a year in recess was on the cards, Hore said the club had seen a strong response from the local community.

“I’ve been getting lots of messages from people asking how they can support,” he said.

“Last week we had five people at training on Monday and that went up to 19 by Wednesday.

“Our club has volunteers coming out of its ears, we had to stop people joining the committee when it got to 20. We’ve got the financial backing.

“We just need the players.”

The desperate need for volunteers has hit the state’s southwest with Port Fairy calling on for “urgent” support just weeks out from the start of the season.

In a statement, the club said it had several positions to fill ahead of its 150th year celebrations.

Player retention particularly across the reserves and under 18s grades were particularly a cause for concern.

“Due to two years with Covid interruptions where the committee has been unavailable to fully connect with our community network, it is now in urgent need of support to find volunteers,” a spokesperson said.

“Without this support, radical changes could happen sooner than later, that could lead to the detriment of the club‘s future as we know it.”

Goulburn Valley league club Benalla launched a similar plea in January saying it was at a “crossroads”.

“Many players who have left the club have made the comment ‘I will be back in a year or two’.

“Please do not sit back and say in a couple of years ‘I should have gotten involved’ as it will be too late.”