Dear Member,
I trust you are all well and looking forward to the festive season with your families.
Registrations for the 2015 season are now open:
Our sporting pulse registration system is now open and ready to accept registrations for the 2015 season. The 2015 registration fee will be $240 for each player, with a $50 discount for each additional sibling ie 1st child $240, 2nd child $190, 3rd child $140, 4th & subsequent children $90. This represents an increase of $10 per player from 2014 to help offset increased charges to the club by the league for team entries, umpires & insurance. To assist the football department in being able to organise teams and player numbers, we ask that you register your child by the 31st January 2015.
As an incentive, all registrations received by the 31st January will be charged at 2014 prices – namely $230 with sibling discount of $50 still available. To streamline the administration process it is now compulsory to register & pay your fees in full online before your registration is complete.
The club does however recognise that there will be circumstances that either prevent families registering online, or making payment in full. If you need either assistance registering or a delayed or instalment payment plan we encourage you to contact any of the below committee members who would be more than happy to assist:
Aleks Todorovic, Treasurer 0412 045 056 aleks.todorovic@aesolutions.com.au
Anne-Marie Halewood, Registration 0423 121 257 smgjfc@gmail.com
Evan Butterworth, President 0413 266 484 butterworthbookkeeping@tpg.com.au
All members will shortly receive an email directly from sporting pulse providing the link & instructions on how to register for 2015. It is important to note that if you have more than one child playing at St Mary’s when you register you need to select the link for multiple children, otherwise the fees will not calculate correctly. If you do not receive this email, or have trouble registering please contact Anne-Marie Halewood via the contact details above.
Greensborough Park Clubrooms renovations
One of the main pieces of feedback we received via our online survey was dissatisfaction with the state of our Greensborough Park clubrooms. The committee has recognised this for some time, however as with all sporting facilities in the region the clubrooms are owned and maintained by Banyule Council. Despite our lobbying, council has indicated that due to the fantastic recent redevelopment of Whatmough Park unfortunately renovations at Greensborough Park fall well down their list of budgetary priorities. As such, the 2015 committee has made a decision to try and ‘go it alone’ and fund and organise our own renovations of the Greensborough Park facilities. We are well into the process of drawing up our wish list and plans – which at this stage include proper bathroom facilities and a separate umpires room as well as painting, flooring & improved spectator facilities. Obviously, all of this will involve significant expenditure and we ask for members assistance by way of:
Major Sponsorship – if you own or work for, or are aware of a business who would be willing to assist financially please let us know. Signage or naming rights may be available for a business who is able to pledge a considerable amount.
In kind sponsorship – once our plans are complete we will be looking for businesses who are able to donate materials such as plumbing supplies, toilets, paint, building materials etc as well as suitably qualified individuals who are able to donate their labour. If you are able to assist, once again please let us know.
Members pledges – our online registration will offer the opportunity to donate funds that will be held aside exclusively for our Greensborough Park renovations. If you are able to afford a small amount extra in order for us to reach our goal of better facilities for our kids it will be most appreciated. Details on how to donate will be provided as part of the registration process. Remember that a lot of small pledges will go a long way.
2015 Platinum Sponsors On behalf of the club I would like to thank the below Platinum Sponsors who have committed to the club in 2015:
Stuart Broadley & Associates: Stuart has been a long term financial supporter of our club, who continues to contribute despite the fact his children are no longer playing at St Marys. As a way of thanking him I encourage all members with insurance, superannuation or financial planning advice needs to support his business. Stuart and his team can be reached on 9480 6999 or via www.sbfa.com.au.
The Blind Spot: Chris at the Blind Spot is supporting the club for a second year as a platinum sponsor. Once again, if members are in the market for blinds, curtains and associated products please show your support by contacting Chris and his team on 9471 9710 or via www.theblindsspotco.com.au.
Banyule Dental: George at Banyule Dental is a new platinum sponsor and we thank him & welcome them aboard. It would be great if any members who are in need of a dentist could make use of Banyule Dentals services and mention St Mary’s when they make an appointment. Banyule Dental are located in Grimshaw St, Greensborough and can be reached on 9435 2966 or via www.banyuledental.com.au.
I would also like to thank Technika for their 10 year major sponsorship. Mark & Craig have made the decision to move on this year, but leave with our utmost appreciation and thanks for their long term support. We wish them and their business well and continue to encourage members to support Technika products wherever possible
Survey Feedback We received over 180 responses to our first ever online survey – a big thank you to all who participated. Your feedback and comments have been analysed by committee and will help form a lot of our decision making for the 2015 season. I am pleased to report that the large majority of responses were complimentary, a positive endorsement of past committees and of our great club in general. A summary of some of the main issues raised are presented below: ·
Grading & Team Selection is always one of the most contentious issues at our club. As with any selection process, be it at sports, school or in employment there will always be people who are dissatisfied with the outcome, unfortunately due to its very nature this is unavoidable. Our goal with grading and team selection is to help develop our kids into the best possible footballer they can be and to maximise their enjoyment of the game & to provide the best outcomes for the greater good of our club & members in general. Our football department has been hard at work over the latter half of 2014 to develop a grading and team selection process that is fair & transparent – a copy of the grading policy is available on our website and will also be provided to all families who are going through the process in 2015. ·
Coaching, as a club we are most appreciative of all of our coaches who volunteer a significant amount of their time and have a strong passion for Australian Football, junior sport and our community. It is mandatory for all of our coaches to have completed the appropriate AFL qualifications. It is important to remember that as parents we tend to watch games with our main focus being our individual son or daughter, where as the coaches need to be responsible for all members of their team. In 2015 we will continue to support our coaches in every way possible and the football department have been working hard to establish partnerships to increase our coaching & player development. We have also appointed a football director, Jack Bachelor whose main role will be coaching support & development. ·
Sunday nights & social events. Our Sunday supporter nights are an important cultural part of our club and your feedback on these nights has been registered. In 2015 our focus will be on making ourSunday nights family friendly, organised & affordable – look forward to some exciting developments next season to achieve these goals. Our social functions are also designed to be affordable and inclusive – for example a number of respondents expressed that they felt having our Sportsman’s function as a weekday lunch was a poor idea, however to attract the calibre of speakers to make the event a success, the cost to run on a weekend night would have been prohibitive, thus excluding a large number of members and being counter-productive in meeting these outcomes.
As always, if you have comments or concerns at any time please feel free to contact me.
Wishing your family a happy and safe Christmas & New Year,
Regards,
Evan Butterworth
President
St Marys GJFC
0413 266 484
