By Jamie Salter
An increase in women participating in sport and an ever-growing population in Berwick means sporting clubs are struggling to find fields to schedule their games.
Berwick coaches are advocating for neighbouring land of Edwin Flack Reserve to be transformed into a second and third sporting oval to meet the increase in demand.
But the future of football and cricket in Berwick is in the hands of Victorian Government, who own the land desired for the expansion.
Member for Gembrook Brad Battin MP said sport needed to be included in the Victorian Government’s Cardinia Creek Regional Parklands Future Directions Plan, which is reimagining existing reserves in the area.
“There’s land available but we just need the government to say ’yes, you can have the land’ and to get that, we need a masterplan,“ Mr Battin said.
“We will work with the club to make sure it is in the masterplan and once it is in place, everything else will fall in line.
“The number of players of all ages just don’t fit on this oval.“
Berwick Football Club vice president Peter Hughes said a lack of facilities was deterring local women from getting involved in sport.
“Last year, we had to turn a women’s team away because they had nowhere to play, and if we’re trying to encourage female sport that’s the last thing we want to do,“ Mr Hughes said.
“Women can’t be an extra team in a blokes club, we need to make them feel part of a community club.“
He said parents who volunteer were being stretched thin, with sporting grounds spread too far apart.
“If you look at where our grounds are, they’re all extremely spread out where all the other clubs have their grounds in the same location,“ he said.
“It’s really hard to have a sense of community when you have two grounds split apart and from a volunteer point of view, it’s two canteens, two groups of parents and twice as hard to run.“
The Berwick Junior Football Club has 23 teams and only one home ground.
President Carly Ravenhall has first-hand experience dropping off her children at multiple locations to play sport.
“Different age groups play at different grounds, so instead of having everyone at one ground, you’re travelling around for hours,“ she said.
“Even for training, every other club uses their own space but we spend thousands on hiring grounds – it’s wasted money.“
