By Jessica Micallef
Woodend football, netball and cricket players have a new pavilion to enjoy.
The new pavilion at the Gilbert Gordon Oval in Woodend, which features female and umpire changerooms, was funded through a $100,000 grant as part of the state government’s Community Sports Infrastructure Fund.
The oval is home to the Woodend Hesket Hawks Football and Netball Club and the Woodend Cricket Club.
Hawks coach Tom Carland said the pavilion had been two years in the making.
“It’s been the talk of the club … we’re all really excited,” he said.
“The government backed it quite heavily and put money into it.”
Mr Carland is hoping the female-friendly changerooms will encourage more girls to take part in sport.
“Clubs, especially at the junior end of it all, are trying to get a girls team up and running,” he said.
“The more people we get doing sport, the better it is.
“The amount of different varieties of sport that people can play, the more time they spend off computer games.”
Macedon MP Mary-Anne Thomas opened the pavilion earlier this month.
“We’re seeing growing numbers of girls and boys, women and men signing up to play sport at local clubs,” she said.
“We want all Victorians to have access to high quality facilities regardless of where they live and or what gender they are.”
