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It might sound a little dramatic, but the sentiment was echoed by Max\u2019s mum, and Lethbridge JFC President, Rebecca Love.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is the only opportunity for sports in our area,\u201d she said. \u201cThere\u2019s very limited options, especially being where we are located. So the kids have found it difficult to involve themselves in sport.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s why were so passionate about brining opportunity to our community. It\u2019s not just the kids in Lethbridge, we\u2019ve got children from She Oakes, Steiglitz, Meredith, Shelford, Teesdale, Bannockburn. They come here for that opportunity to participate in sport.\u201d<\/p>\n
It\u2019s an opportunity that almost didn\u2019t exist a couple of years ago.<\/p>\n
The Moorabool junior footy comp, which had just four teams playing each other in a round-robin format, shutdown. It also lacked opportunity for player progression.<\/p>\n
In 2016 the Lethbridge JFC was restarted by Sharon Boyd and Amanda Haby and the team joined the Barwon junior football league.<\/p>\n
\u201cNow that we\u2019re joined in with the Barwon league we are playing through Geelong, so we\u2019re playing right out to Port Arlington, which can be a bit of a challenge for an early morning start, but that just shows the passion of all of our families,\u201d Ms Love said.<\/p>\n
The volunteers who make sure the Rosellas can run onto the park each week don\u2019t just look after games days, they also coordinate an Auskick program for younger players that runs in both Lethbridge and Meredith and puts on a community meal on Wednesday evenings.<\/p>\n
Like pretty much every other grassroots community club in Australia, Lethbridge JFC is kept alive by the tireless work of those same helpers.<\/p>\n
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