To all members, coaches, players, parents and care givers. The Mount Lofty Football Club would like to notify all those above that as of midnight tonight [19.7.21]
ALL TRAININGS Including Thursday Night Meals will be CANCELLED/POSTPONED until further notice as directed by SA Health and the Government. At the moment there is a review of these restrictions scheduled for this coming Friday.
Once any decisions are made, we will quickly get communication out to all teams. I ask for your patience in this uncertain time. Rest assure the committee is working behind the scenes to get all communications out in a timely manner.
It is a big weekend with Nipple’s 300th senior game for the Dev’s this Saturday, so Covid-19 will not stop us! There are however some new restrictions for all officials, players and spectators of home and away teams to be aware of, be it at Arkaba oval or at an away game. Please be respectful of all venues to avoid a fine for yourself and the club.
You will be asked to check in on arrival – QR Code system is fundamental to keeping our communities safe and supporting SA Health with contract tracing efforts.
The following restrictions impacting sporting clubs/licenced venues are in place:
Density requirement of 1 person per 2sqm (including in licenced venue, changerooms and all other areas)
Seated consumption (both food and drink) is required inside at licenced venues
No communal food such as buffets
No dancing in relevant licenced venues
No singing in indoor spaces (club songs MUST be sung outside on the oval or another appropriate outdoor space)
Face masks to be worn by medical staff (doctors, physios, sports trainers etc) during treatment
Recommendation that people wear masks while in public
We’ve raised just over $2.5k for the new digital scoreboard through the Toyota Good for Footy raffle so far. It’s a promising start, but still a long way from our goal of $20k.
Lucy Earl, daughter of Dennis Earl was a member of the Glenelg SANFLW team which defeated West Adelaide in last Saturday’s Grand Final to win their first Premiership.
Lucy, 23, 178 centimetres and playing in defence, has played 32 games and was named in Glenelg’s Best Players in their 5.10.40 – 2.5.17 victory. Lucy also gained the accolade of ranking equal 4th in Glenelg’s B&F count this year.
Encounter Bay was Lucy’s first club and later she played in a Premiership side with Christies Beach before joining Glenelg in 2020. While we would love to have seen her in the Red and White, it was terrific to see her competing against our Allani Dawes playing for Sturt on Adelaide Oval during the season.
We wish to congratulate Lucy and her family who have been amazing players, officials and supporters of Mt Lofty and Heritage Clubs, Aldgate and Heathfield Aldgate United. Brothers Dennis and Barry played in many Premierships for HAU and Mt Lofty, with Dennis going on to be President of the club. Grandfather Garry played for Aldgate and was an incredibly dedicated volunteer for HAU and Mt Lofty for decades while Grandmother, Bev also gave dedicated service over decades.
The SANFL invites players to test their footy skills and wheelchair ability in the first Draft Combine for wheelchair footy:
Date: Friday 18 June Time: 5.30pm to 7.30pm Venue: The Lights Community and Sports Centre, Lightsview
The event will give players an opportunity to showcase their talent and register for the inaugural Novita SANFL Wheelchair Football League set to commence in July. Players will experience draft combine testing including 20m sprint and agility circuit, along with playing short matches.
Everyone is welcome to play this inclusive sport which involves mixed teams of five, including players with and without disability.
The Novita SANFL Wheelchair Football League will have four SANFL Clubs competing: Central District, Norwood, Sturt and Woodville-West Torrens. The Combine will aid in the drafting of players into these competing SANFL Clubs.
Sport wheelchairs will be available to borrow on the day. Please wear sports/active clothes and bring your own water bottle. Click here for player registration: https://bit.ly/3pdfz8S
As we hit the halfway mark of the season, let’s take a moment to reflect on how our behaviour on game day has an impact on the children within our club.
As a community, Mt Lofty Devils are providing good examples of behaviour on games day, so let’s keep it up. But things can turn hairy easily, as they have with some recent publicised incidents at other clubs. Remember, “…every time we swear, hit, racially vilify or attack an opponent, an umpire or a spectator, there is a child watching.”
Also a reminder that BYO alcohol to games breaches the licensing rules of the club, so, while tempting on days when the bar is not open, it simply is not allowed.
We also wanted to share this letter from Lisa Faraci from the SANFL:
Letter to Community Clubs Regarding Behaviour
To all Club Officials, Coaches, Members, Parents and Guardians,
I write to you as follow on from SANFL’s response to recent unacceptable behaviour from some members of our football community at metro SANFL Juniors matches.
Unfortunately, these incidents are not isolated to the metro junior football space.
The majority of our Clubs and Leagues are enjoying being back on the park and, pleasingly, female football continues to gain popularity with 7% growth so far on 2019 participation figures. Clubs are also doing a great job in managing the additional requirements associated with COVID protocols which have now become the “new norm” at footy matches and venues.
However, in recent weeks we have seen a surge in football issues across regional areas which are extremely concerning. These include: • Racial vilification • Verbal and physical abuse of umpires and spectators • Liquor licence breaches • Poor concussion management • Clubs attempting to bypass League Rules and Regulations • Concerns regarding Club application of the Total Player Payment system
We simply cannot continue to tolerate these kinds of incidents.
We set very clear behavioural expectations for participants, coaches, officials, parents and spectators in community football and these expectations should be well known and enforced by all clubs. Unfortunately, the frequency with which we are receiving reports of unacceptable behaviour shows that this is clearly not the case and stronger action must be taken.
There are several key areas of concern that must be addressed.
UMPIRES
Umpire abuse continues to be a major issue and one that simply must stop. Umpires must be allowed to do their job in a safe and supportive environment. The fact that we continue to receive reports of threatening behaviour toward umpires is completely unacceptable. It must be remembered that many umpires of junior matches are under 18 and, just like your players, the umpires are developing and learning the game and should be supported and treated with respect.
COACHES, PARENTS & PLAYERS
On the field, we have seen an increase in player sanctions, while the behaviour of some parents and spectators continues to fall well below the standards expected by the football community. Incidents such as on-field melees, parents and spectators approaching young umpires after games or yelling abuse at opposing players simply cannot be tolerated. Our coaches, officials and parents must set the example. In particular, coaches are role models and leaders for their young players and it is therefore incredibly frustrating to also continually hear reports of poor behaviour from coaches on and off the field.
MOVING FORWARD
As Club leaders I ask you to get in front of your players, coaches and supporters and remind them about what is acceptable behaviour at your footy club.
I ask you to remind them to respect umpires.
I ask you to remind them that every time we swear, hit, racially vilify or attack an opponent, an umpire or a spectator, there is a child watching.
I ask you to have the courage to recognise the culture or education gaps at your club and to implement change.
One abused spectator, one racially vilified player, one junior player punched, one spectator abused is one too many.
What happens if you don’t change? What happens if we don’t, as a football community, recognise our current precarious position?
We lose volunteers.
We lose respect as an industry.
We are challenged by Government and by Action Groups to provide a please explain.
We fall prey to an uncontrollable social media system and then we lose control of our message.
We lose funding.
We lose sponsors.
We lose community respect.
We lose our capacity to be regarded as positive role models across the communities we represent.
And most importantly we teach our children that abuse, violence and inequality are part of the football landscape.
Is that acceptable?
It isn’t for me.
To put it simply, we all need to do better. SANFL is committed to providing all clubs with support where necessary; however, it is ultimately up to you to drive the standards of behaviour that are set for all participants. It is up to us all to be positive role models for the future generation of footy clubs.
We need to remember that it is a game of footy. We love competition and rivalry, but abuse, violence and threatening behaviour is unacceptable and cannot go without sanction. It is up to us all to work together to create a safer and more tolerant football community.
Let’s be proud of our sport and embrace the sense of belonging and connection we all enjoy that comes when we walk into a club every weekend as a player, spectator or volunteer.
