A sweet treat for local sporting clubs

CENTRAL Highlands and Ballarat football netball clubs converged on Mars Stadium last week to collect more than $40,000 worth of confectionery as part of a Western Bulldogs initiative.

Supplied by Mars Wrigley Australia, the treats will be sold by members of each club, who can keep the profits.

“We are giving to the community some product, for both the Ballarat Football Netball League and Central Highlands Football Netball League in order to really get down to grassroots football,” Mars Wrigley Australia CFO Duncan Webster said.

“They can then choose what to do with that product to sell within their clubs.”

Head of partnerships at the Western Bulldogs, Sarah Armstrong, said it is important for the club to give back to the Ballarat community and do more than play football games in Ballarat.

“It reinforces our commitment to the Ballarat region,” she said.

“We are really committed, and we have staff here that want to invest in grassroots community sport.

“It’s really important that we’re not just coming here and playing one or two matches a year but having a presence 365 days of the year.”

The initiative is one of several facilitated by the Western Bulldogs in Ballarat including the Sons and Daughters of the West health and wellbeing programs, the youth leadership program and the Bulldogs Read literacy program.

East Point Football Netball Club joint president Simon Clark said as expenses rise, support from the community is critical.

“In the current times, for everybody out there with expenses, it’s hard to raise funds,” he said.

“Our priorities are always our people… so simple things like training equipment, safety equipment around the club.”