JUNIOR football participation rates in Melbourne’s outer west are falling, with fewer than one in five children playing Australian Rules in Wyndham.
Melton, Hume, Brimbank and Hobsons Bay have similar participation rates for children aged 5-18, AFL Victoria figures show.
The participation rate in these western municipalities was lower than 19 per cent, compared with 50 per cent in inner municipalities like Moonee Valley. In the outer south-east, Bayside, Cardinia and Mornington Peninsula had participation rates of more than 30per cent.
In a submission to a state government inquiry, AFL Victoria general manager Grant Williams said overall player numbers had surged over the past decade, but participation rates should be higher in growth suburbs.
Participation in places like Wyndham was being stifled by inadequate access to facilities like ovals and clubrooms, which hadn’t kept pace with rapid population growth.
“[In] Point Cook, active open space and sporting infrastructure was not initially provided, resulting in an under-supply of active open space for grounds,” Williams said.
Hoppers Crossing Auskick spokeswoman Mary Sharma said the number of children taking part in the program had dwindled in recent years, one of the reasons being inadequate venues.
“We’ve had our issues in the past. When we used an oval in Hogans Road the condition of the ground was very bad and we had to seek an alternative. We now use Warringa Crescent, which is in really good nick most of the year, but because it isn’t where young families are based in the suburb it causes issues.”
Wyndham mayor Kim McAliney said the council recently awarded a $2.55million contract to build two new ovals in Wyndham Vale South. “These projects will provide much-needed sporting infrastructure for the growing population in Tarneit and Wyndham Vale and allow our residents to have a social or a serious game of cricket or footy.”
