Big in-roads are being made to create Stawell’s first ever soccer club.
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A group of like-minded people from Stawell have come together in the hope of creating a Stawell-based club to join the Ballarat and District Soccer Association Soccer Association next season.
The group is still in the early stages of getting a club up and running, but said they are very serious about the prospect of starting a soccer club in Stawell.
One of the head organisers of the movement is Jason Oosthuizen, who said he has seen a high demand for a soccer club in the town recently.
“It has been something we have been thinking about for the last few years but we have really started to put things into motion now,” he said.
“We already have enough numbers to field a full senior men’s team.
“I think it would be great to see another sport in Stawell.”
Currently their are no soccer clubs between Ballarat and Horsham.
The group is yet to form an official club, but they are in the process of becoming a recognised organisation.
Members from the proposed Stawell Soccer Club met with Northern Grampians Shire Council leisure and recreation coordinator Tony Dark on Wednesday to discuss the initiative.
Dark said council is on board with the suggestions the group has put forward.
“We are always supportive of people getting active in Stawell and a soccer club is just another way of doing so,” he said.
“There is a lot of work to be done but we are more than happy to help them out and point them in the right direction.”
Dark and the group agreed on a proposed home ground at the grass area surrounded by the athletics track at North Park.
The proposed pitch would be the perfect size for a soccer ground, meeting all size regulations.
The group had initially suggested the idea of making the field surrounded by the Stawell velodrome its home ground which Dark said is not feasible at this point in time.
“The Old Lake ground is not as well maintained as North Park so it would be very difficult to make that their startup ground,” he said.
“North Park has fantastic facilities and has been approved for big upgrades over the next two years. It will serve as a great multi-purpose venue that soccer can be part of.
“They can virtually use the facilities at North Park straight away once they are ready.”
Oosthuizen said he hopes Old Lake can become a future home ground.
“Maybe at some point in the future we can move out there and make it our own with our own identity,” he said.
Ballarat and District Soccer Association Soccer Association president Herman Bogers said he is on board with the idea of Stawell joining the association.
“We already have a team in Horsham so Stawell would not be an issue at all,” he said.
“We would be willing to do whatever we can to get them up and going and make it a viable option.
“A lot of things need to happen but we will continue to meet with them, just as we already have, to help them succeed.”
Oosthuizen said the initiative is not a once off movement and he hopes to establish a healthy club that can grow from the roots up.
“We are hoping to at least field one side next year but we also have a big focus on junior development as well,” he said.
“It would be great to have a junior program running to ensure the success of the club in the long term.”
The club is still in the process of recruiting players, finding sponsors and buying required equipment.
“We will get the ball rolling by organising a committee which I will most likely be president of and then from there we will look to get grants from wherever we can to get started,” Oosthuizen said.
Horsham Soccer Club treasurer Helen Hawken said the introduction of another soccer team in the Wimmera would be massive for the sport.
“We want to focus on building skills and you can’t do that if you don’t have anyone to play against near you,” she said.
“We are definitely supportive of this move.”
- Jason Oosthuizen can be contacted on 0455 746 642 for more information about the club