TAYLORS Lake secretary Sarah Connelly knows more than most the benefits of being a fan and volunteer of a country football and netball club.
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Connelly has been secretary for the past three years and is a big supporter of the club.
“I started at Taylors Lake eight years ago when I met my partner Brent who was at Taylors Lake,” she said.
“The people out there are like family now. I’ve made a lot of friends out there. On home game day I’m pretty busy entering all the scores. When we are away the other team does that so I get a break and I like watching the football. I know the footy rules better than the netball.”
Connelly and her husband went through some tough times last season. During the football and netball season her husband was rushed to hospital in Horsham.
Connelly said during the hard times it was great to have a community around the club to help her out.
“Last year was pretty hard, Brent ended up in hospital and the club was so supportive always ringing me and offering us any help we needed,” she said.
“Everyone always gets around each other, especially in the tough times.
“It was during the footy season and he was put on life support. We went to hospital in Melbourne and we were there for a week.
“It was great to have the club there and it really helps get you through it all.”
Connelly said finding volunteers for country clubs can be hard, but said the benefits were always rewarding.
“It’s a struggle getting people to volunteer but once they take that first step they really do love it and everyone becomes a big family,” she said. “I find it rewarding. When everyone gives it a go they come back and want to volunteer more.”
Connelly said through some heavy senior losses it is the volunteers’ love for the club that keeps everyone in high spirits.
“It’s hard with the losses but I think the love for the club is what keeps everyone together,” she said.
“We are very lucky now to have a lot of people there who really love the club and put a lot in.
“The fans, especially the older ones, are very supportive. They have been there since the start and seen a lot. We’ve had wins and big losses but any club goes through that.”
Connelly said a good memory was the 2016 reserves football premiership, although she missed out on most of the game.
“When we won the reserves premiership I was part of doing the catering for the whole day so I didn’t get to see the game,” she said.
“Hopefully we will be back in finals again this season. We have our under-14s junior football team on top of the ladder doing well and also some of the younger netball teams.”