Doesnt look good for footy season. Already GDFL pushed back and GFL. BFL looks like starting on time.
From the Addy this morning.
Geelong's sporting wasteland
Peter Begg
11Jan07
The parched Myers Reserve paints a grim picture of Geelong;s sporting grounds and the troubled season ahead. Photo: ALISON WYND
LOCAL sporting clubs have been thrown into chaos as the drought turns playing fields concrete hard.
The Geelong and District Football League yesterday announced its season would not start until May at the earliest.
The last rounds of the season will be dropped, to allow for finals to take place as scheduled.
The district league has been told by City Hall to concentrate on playing on two grounds in urban Geelong, Shell Reserve and Bell Post Hill, which have tanks installed.
Football Geelong has already put the start of the Geelong Football League season back two weeks, cancelling all but one bye.
The BFL season is penciled in to start as per normal on April 7 to help maximise club revenue over Easter.
But Football Geelong CEO Steven O'Dowd last night said it was highly likely that season openers would be pushed back to accommodate ground renovation works. ``The council have outlined a works program, including re sowing, that may help some grounds recover. As a result, they have suggested that if possible we hold off until the start of May,'' Mr O'Dowd said.
``I think it's a fair request but it will be all down to the condition of the grounds. It's all up in the air and is contingent on a bit of weather support and whether the clubs and the league can get the grounds heavily watered during February and March.''
Geelong City Council this week moved to close another five ovals as Stage 4 water restrictions enter their second month.
Grounds at Ocean Grove, Drysdale and Hume Reserve were already closed, and many others were on the danger list.
This week the city moved to close grounds at Hamlyn Park, Herne Hill Reserve, Stead Park and Bellarine Secondary College.
GDFL President Neville Whitely said yesterday the district league was meeting with club presidents tonight to come up with proposals to put to Geelong City Council on how to manage its grounds.
Mr Whitely said the GDFL had four grounds at Winchelsea, Inverleigh, Bannockburn and Werribee that were outside the City of Greater Geelong, and talks were schedules with the respective councils.
``So we will be meeting tomorrow night and we will be looking at the grounds that are most likely to come up to scratch and we've got to delay the start of our football season,'' Mr Whitely said.
``Council has told us that whatever happens we won't be starting before the 1st of May.''
He said the league would look at Saturday and Sunday games on certain grounds.
The GDFL netball season will start at the usual time, but will start in reverse order from round 18 until the football starts, when it will revert to playing round one opponents onwards.
The Geelong Cricket Association resumes this week, with turf semi-finals spread around four grounds. The turf finals will be played next week at Lara and South Barwon grounds.
Last month a GCA match between Bell Post Hill and Grovedale at Myers Reserve was abandoned in the 15th over because the pitch was considered unsafe by both captains and the umpire. One cracked section of the pitch could be moved by hand.
Chief GCA groundsman Graeme Scannell said yesterday most local grounds were shot, but the grounds picked for the finals had couch grass wicket areas.
Mr Scannell said the situation was not good, but everyone was in the same boat and people just had to make the best of it.
Both Southern Leigh and Bellarine cricket associations are intending to play through, while reviewing the situation each week.
The City of Greater Geelong recently approved a series of grants to assist local clubs.
These included:
$25,000 requested for a water re-use scheme at new soccer pitches being established in Ocean Grove;
$25,000 for a water re-use program at the Geelong Cricket Ground, and
$10,000 requested on behalf of a group of local bowling clubs to cover the cartage costs of water to keep their natural grass greens alive.
Watering at Grovedale Recreation Reserve and Myers Reserve is being carried out using storage tanks being refilled with Class C water from the Black Rock treatment treatment plant.
Two water 45,000 litre storage tanks have also been installed at Queens Park Golf Course and the Balyang Par Three course.