Well, the weather gods were against us again on the weekend, cold and wet, but that’s footy. If you haven’t already it might be an idea to see the Girls in the rooms and grab a hoodie or spray jacket to see you through the winter months….
I took in the Dawn Service in Edwards street on Saturday Morning. In very cold and wet conditions, the amount of parents and kids from the club that were there to pay respects to our ANZACs was fantastic. According to the RSL it was the biggest crowd they have had at a dawn service, it’s great to see our children taking such an interest on such occasions.
Not many people may be aware but as part of our commitment to the club and our community we have two Player Welfare Officers that are available for any players, parents or guardians to discuss issues of concern that are not necessarily football related.
Shane McNamara and Katrina van Dam are our two contacts. As part of their role they deliver relevant presentations to some of our playing group around such issues as Racism, Drugs and Alcohol, Depression. This Wednesday night they will be discussing Social Media with our Under 14, 15 & 16 Boys sides, while a separate discussion will be held for the 15 Girls team.
Shane and Katrina are both volunteers and Parents of children at the club. Should you wish to contact either of them, their contact details follow. Please be mindful that they do both work full time, so leave a brief message and they will get back to you or you can have a quiet chat on a training night. They will be setting up an information board with brochures, etc. relating to current issues within our community and society in general.
This may sound a little corny, but we are one big family at West’s. It’s a great environment for our children to play and make lifelong friends and a social outlet for us grown ups as well. To think we are immune from the social issues that are affecting our society at this time is naïve. To that end, please if you need any assistance don’t hesitate to contact either of our Welfare Officers, and let’s keep an eye out for each other. It does not take much to ask someone if they are ok.
Player Welfare Officers:
Shane McNamara 0418 448 214
Katrina van Dam 0416 967 205
On a lighter note, it was great to see footy back on the main oval on Sunday. The ground appears to have held up well after the 3 games and the wet weather. We still need to manage the welfare of the ground so the majority of training will still be on the top oval with limited access to the main oval at this time.
We thank everyone for your patience over the early part of the season. It’s not been ideal with the ground out of action, training being at different venues, and limited space on the top oval but there is light at the end of the tunnel which is great.
Week 4 of the season is the last of the grading games for under 10 to 16’s. The NFL will assess the results of the first 4 weeks and they will make whatever changes they see fit in terms of sides going up/down or staying put in Blue/Red/Green or Silver. This process can take most of the week. Once they finalise the grading, they will release the draw for the remainder of the year. Don’t think that it will be locked in !! As history tells us changes will continue to be made up to Friday, and sometimes even after round 5.
The fixture for both the girls sides and the under 9s teams should be locked in for the rest of the season. Just be aware that changes might be made due to club requests/NFL reasons, etc.. Just keep an eye out for changes.
Whilst on the under 9’s, to our newer parents, the 9’s is a wonderful little competition seeing our future champs running about. The ability of the sides can vary greatly from week to week. Taking our 9 White team as an example, after two very competitive games, they played a team on the weekend that have been together for 2 years and were mostly a year older than our boys and girls and this reflected in the way the game was played. The great thing was watching our little tackers keep fighting it out at every contest and not giving up, that’s the nature of under 9 football.
Again over the weekend we had some good wins and some losses. Some good hard footy was played. For the record standing on the sidelines on the top oval gives you a good view of both grounds so you don’t need to miss any of the action, and there was plenty on offer. Well done to all our teams on your efforts over the weekend.
Congrats to Jaylon Williamson who played his 100thgame on the weekend in the under 15’s. Apologies if I miss any milestone, please let me know.
The Seniors travelled to Bundoora on Saturday. In tough conditions all three sides lowered their colours to the Bulls. This week it’s Home at JE Moore Park, against the Tigers of Heidelberg. Should be a cracking match. With a bit of luck David Rodan will be back in the side. So get on down on Saturday to support the big boys…
On the social side of things for the grown ups, ie Parents and Senior Players this one is for you…
Hollywood is coming to the Roosters… Saturday the 23rdof May from 7.30 in the club rooms.
$50 per ticket, which includes finger food, beer, wine and soft drink.
Dress up as your favourite movie character/s or dress for a night at the Oscar’s.
Tickets can be purchased from the rooms on Wednesday or Friday nights. Just see Sharnie or Marie.
If you can’t make it on either of those nights, then contact either of the ladies- Sharnie 0413 388 458 or Marie 0419 170 494 to book your tickets.
Seniors can chase Dooga on a Thursday night for their tickets. This will be a great night of fun, don’t miss out. Get in early for your tickets and start planning your outfits.
That’s all for this week. Have a good one and see you at the footy on the weekend.
Sean.
Keep your eye on the Red, White and Blue.
posted 28/4/2015
Last Modified on 20/01/2016 21:56