Seventy-two sporting clubs across Queensland will share $30 million under the second round of the state government's Games On! Grassroots Infrastructure Program. The round will support sports including football, cricket, netball and gymnastics, funding new and upgraded courts, rooms, lighting and grandstands. The first recipient is the University of Queensland Football Club at Chapel Hill in Brisbane, which will receive more than $1.4 million for a new clubhouse. In the first round, 119 projects are being delivered, with 40 complete and 79 underway.
Whyalla's football clubs are worried about their future as steelworks job losses reduce the local population. The state government said the blast furnace would not restart, cutting the plant's direct workforce from 1,700 to 1,200. Roopena Football Club president Robert Brereton said every club expects player shortages and struggles to find volunteers. Greg Flanegan of North Whyalla Football Club said the league may need to shrink from six clubs to four or five. Brereton said the town's sporting future may become clearer once a buyer for the steelworks is announced.
Football Queensland has reversed its proposed changes to 2027 fees after member clubs across the state objected. More than 100 clubs wrote to the governing body earlier this month, saying the increase was unreasonably dramatic and could make the sport unaffordable for families. The body will keep its existing fee structure rather than introduce a new Competition Access Fee, though it will make modest adjustments for inflation. Player enrolment fees for 2027 will be $60 for MiniRoos, $80 for junior players and $150 for seniors.
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The Footscray Club in Melbourne's inner west closed its doors on Sunday after 132 years. Its president, Neil Lewis, said the club had tried everything to survive and was closing out of necessity, not choice. Members say rising drink prices and a shrinking, older membership left it unable to cope. Safety concerns in the area have also kept some members away. Long Huynh, who owns the building, said he wanted to keep the club open, but Footscray had become very hard for business.
