Kiewa-Sandy Creek supporter wins Sports volunteer award

For more than fifty years, Allan Croucher has helped his football club in Victoria’s North East remain strong, which is why he is winner of the Sports Heart Volunteer Award.

Allan Croucher is winner of the Sports Heart Volunteer Award. Picture: Zoe Phillips

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WHEN there’s a job to be done at his beloved Kiewa-Sandy Creek football club, Allan Croucher is the first to turn up. He’s also the last to go home at the end of any working bee.

Allan is undoubtedly one of the club’s most dedicated volunteers, and says he gets a lot of “satisfaction” out of the volunteer work he does in the Kiewa and Tangambalanga communities.

In addition to his work with the Kiewa-Sandy Creek football club, which plays in the Tallangatta and District Football League in North East Victoria, Allan is also involved in the local Lions Club.

The Tangambalanga resident played football for Kiewa and then, when the clubs merged 50 years ago, Kiewa-Sandy Creek. He has been on the committee in the past, and these days is a staunch regular at working bees, clean up days and puts his hand up to do any handyman jobs.

He also has an extensive collection of local and football club history, although he wants to figure out the best way to preserve and display it.

“The footy club I think, overall, is a very, very important organisation in the community,” Allan said. “It’s the same as the local pub, I suppose — it’s more or less a meeting place where people can socialise together, even if they’re on the opposite sides, you can always have a few drinks after the game and it brings everyone together.”

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Allan has also been a member of the Kiewa-Tangambalanga Lions Club since its inception and remains on the committee to this day. Among their many projects, Lions Club members man the gates at local football games, cater events including the Dederang races, support school and youth programs, and maintain the Kiewa cemetery. Allan was formally a member of the local fire brigade, and about a month ago joined the committee of management at a local park in Kiewa.

He said volunteers were a huge part of local communities. “They’re the backbone of everyday things that need to be done,” he said.

For his dedication to local sport and commitment to his community, Allan Croucher is a deserving winner of the Sports award.

The Weekly Times Heart Volunteer Awards are supported by the Powercor Country Festival.