The wet weather during the week meant that there was little football action for our Club teams last weekend. Our home ground Cawley Park was closed all weekend as were most of the grounds in the northern Illawarra area. Remember to check out our website as we will post updates on ground closures and fixture changes as soon as we receive them. It also has a link to Wollongong council grounds where you can check to see if grounds are open or not.
Upgrading of Cawley Park facilities
Members of our Committee were invited to attend the announcement of the 2012 NSW Community Building Partnership program by Ryan Park the Keira State MP on Monday 23rd April at the Arcadian theatre in Corrimal. Tony Maddox and I were able to make the event which will see a grant of $41250 provided to the upgrade of existing facilities at Cawley Park. In addition to this Ryan Park also spoke with Wollongong City Council requesting additional funding which was approved, resulting in over $80,000 funding secured to improve facilities at our home ground!!
The main focus will be the much needed upgrading of plumbing and electrical systems in the main sheds. Special thanks to Ryan Park as without his support, assistance and involvement, this project would have been very difficult to have got approval from the relevant government authorities. Also Special thanks to Troy Bray our ground caretaker and Steve Smart our secretary who were driving forces behind the upgrading process. Their ongoing persistence with local authorities regarding the project was very much appreciated and will ensure the end result will be enjoyed by the Russell Vale community for many years to come- Well done guys and thank you!! Jim Fryday (RV Mens FC) Renae Walker (RV Vipers) and Lee Vale (RV Pink) also played their part in what was a good showing of community support for the project.
Commencement date of work has yet to be confirmed but at this stage it looks like work will begin after the soccer season has ended.
Positive Feedback for RVJFC Under 9’s Team
At the Meeting of the announcement of grants, Tony and I were told what a wonderful bunch of kids we have playing in our under 9 team this year by one of Ryan Park’s assistants. Our team played her son’s team from Fernhill on the weekend. She said not only were they a very skilful side but they played the game in the right spirit and were a real credit to the Russell Vale club! It is great hearing this sort of feedback from people outside of our Club- we in the Club know what a great Club Russell Vale is and how wonderful our players, parents and coaches are- but it is always nice to get recognition from outside of the club! Well done under 9’s and keep up the good work!!
RESULTS FROM COMPETITION TEAMS ROUND 2
RVJFC 11.3 vs. Oak Flats
The 11.3 Team kept their unbeaten run to the start of the season in tact with a hard fought 2-1 win over a willing and very competitive Oak Flats side. After conceding the first goal the Team showed great character and composure to bounce back and score the next 2 goals.
RVJFC 13.1 vs. Shellharbour
The 13.1 boys played well and improved on last week’s performance however went down to a well drilled Shellharbour side 3-1. There were a lot of positives to take out of the game and
the side will be looking to build on this performance next match.
RVJFC 15.2G vs. Balgownie
The 15.2G team showed great character against an experienced Balgownie outfit and scored 2 goals but were no match for Bally on the day. The girl’s combinations and play is still a work in progress and their set pieces will be a big focus at training this week.
The 13.1G and 11.4 team did not make it onto the pitch this week and will be keen as mustard to get out on the pitch in round 4.
Thanks to the coaches who have already started putting together match reports for their teams. Full match reports can be found on our website: rvjfc.com.au. If any coach or manager from any team (under 6’s to Under 15’s) would like to put a few words together to be included in newsletter or a full match report, please feel free to do so- it doesn’t take too long and the kids will get a real kick out of it!! All match reports and photos from game can be emailed to our web dude or myself at: garryluyten@bigpond.com or mjbenn13@hotmail.com. Please have any reports/ photos emailed by 5.00pm Monday so they can be included in the following week’s newsletter.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Luke Kerr Gala Day
We have our Luke Kerr under 8 Gala Day coming up on Sunday 6th May. This is always a big day and we have had over 20 teams play in this over the last few years. This year is shaping up to be bigger and better and we have already started receiving nominations from teams looking to take part.
Team Photos
Official Club Team photos have been booked for Saturday 12th May. The committee will put out a schedule of times etc. during the next week and send it thru to all coaches and managers so event can run as smoothly as possible on the day.
ROUND 3 DRAW
The draw for round 3 is now on our website. The highlight being our youngest age group the under 6’s getting to play their first match on their home ground- Cawley Park, as we are hosting the under 6 hub next week.
Good luck for the weekend to all Teams and let’s hope this rain stays away so we can get to enjoy some football!!!
Regards
Michael Benn
RVJFC President.
