Business & Events
Shona MacInnes General Manager, Business & Projects
Occasionally you can be unlucky and buy a car that turns out to be a lemon. The first few outings it runs like a dream then the faults creep in. It starts, stops, starts again, pauses, chokes into life and then finally conks out. 2021 was a lemon.
Planning and bookings were well underway for the Big V Club Luncheon, the William Buck Finals Lunch and the VAFA Awards Night, before Covid-19 claimed more scalps and all three major events had to be abandoned.
We launched the season with high hopes in the Member’s Dining Room at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. It was great to see everyone back together after an empty 2020. There was a buzz of expectation in anticipation of a ‘normal’ year.
Our Community Partners in 2021 were Breast Cancer Network Australia, Tackle Your Feelings, Thick & Thin and TAC Towards Zero. The PLAY4BCNA Round on May 8 was embraced by 23 of our clubs who variously held lunches, afternoon teas, wore pink socks and raised over $28,000. It’s a fantastic start to our official partnership and we hope to build on this in 2022. Unfortunately, our Mental Health Awareness and TAC Rounds were compromised, although the Tackle Your Feelings Program, which we launched this year, provided much needed support for the clubs who participated in it. Further detail of the program can be found in the Club Development Report.
285 people witnessed Certificates of Merit carried over from 2020 presented to Kylie Da Fonte (MHSOB), Stephen Manning (Ormond), Terry Symons (Parkdale Vultures), Scott Williams (Caulfield Grammarians), Phil Skeggs (Ivanhoe AFC), John Pilkington (VAFA Tribunal) and John Robinson (VAFA). The 2021 awardees were Richard Simon (Ormond), Mick O’Leary (Therry Penola) and Gerry Westmore (Uni Blues). Each of the recipients displayed either outstanding service to their club or the VAFA. Peter Nash and Michael Hazell were awarded with much deserved Life Memberships of the VAFA and MC, Natalie Edwards, interviewed special guest speaker, young Australian Test Cricketer, Will Pucovski.
We thank Adam Kirkwood–Scott for expertly guiding the Commercial/Media Sub-committee through another difficult year. Business for our apparel suppliers, CGR, StarSub and TLA did pick up and it was good to see our players out on the ground in some new gear. We thank these suppliers, and Sherrin, for their continued support of the VAFA and our clubs. The on-line store is now ‘pay up front’ which has dispensed with the old inefficient system of invoicing. Next year we are planning a full calendar for events, including a Season Launch Gala to celebrate the 130th year of the VAFA. We have already said goodbye to the lemon that was season 2021, and invested in a brand-new vehicle - polished, reliable and humming, ready to start a year with all the trimmings that make the VAFA the place we love.
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