Presidents Report
I can’t believe we have only 6 more weeks until the end of the 2010 season. Hopefully we will have teams participating every week from now until August 29 when the Under 14 to Under 17 Grand Finals are played. This is a great time of year for everyone involved in junior football. The excitement of lightning premierships for under 9’s & 10’s over the next fortnight will be a high light for all of our young Knights.
Last Sunday night I was really pleased with the number of players, parents and supporters who attended our club night. We were very fortunate to have Patrick Ryder in attendance. I am sure everyone who was there would have been impressed with Patrick’s openness and the manner with which he answered all of the questions from our budding AFL stars. Patrick was pleased to sign autographs, have photos taken and he presented all of our monthly player awards. Despite having a 6.00 am start on Monday morning he was happy to remain at the club until everyone had his signature as a memento of his visit.
As a club we are very fortunate that Paul Connors has once again arranged for a player to be in attendance. We should never take this for granted with the growing demands on AFL players we are lucky that we have been able to have regular special guests. It is also pleasing to see AFL players at our club in such a positive light and interacting so well with all of the players ( and some parents ). Not enough of the good work that is done by young AFL players is high lighted, so as a club we should do our bit in reinforcing the positive things about AFL players who visit us.
We are having a committee meeting on Monday July 26th at Mick Aherns home, 33 Allenby Avenue East Malvern, from 8pm. I would like to extend the invite to anyone who has read my previous Knights News pieces and is considering joining the committee to attend this meeting. Come along, meet the other committee members, see what our great club is doing, future plans and hopefully see how you can contribute for season 2011 and beyond. The club only goes from strength to strength through YOUR involvement, new ideas and regeneration of hard workers. If you don’t want to come on your own, bring a friend, we need at least 2 more committee members.
There are a few more things to get done before the year ends so please keep an eye out for the following events;
- Team Photographs August 8th;
- Coaches and Team mangers meeting date TBA;
- Grade selection review meeting date TBA after this weeks committee meeting.
To all players and parents please ensure that the reputation of the club is one of competitiveness and fairness both on and off the ground. Parent behavior is the cornerstone of a successful club. It is not just up to the Team Managers. At all times ensure we respect our opposition and the umpires. The league will be vigorously enforcing parental controls during the finals; it would be a shame to miss your son or daughter playing due to unacceptable comments or behavior.
Sadly, there continues to be incidents of unacceptable behavior towards umpires in Junior Football. With all the promotion the AFL has invested in respecting umpires, its very sad to see articles such as the recent report in the Herald Sun that involved officials from Lalor which plays in the Northern Football League. As we head into finals, this is a timely reminder to behave appropriately towards umpires.
Please remember to keep up the good work on and off the ground and enjoy your participation in the EMJFC.
Go Knights
Lewis Bearman, President
Last Modified on 22/07/2010 21:55
