Sporting clubs around the Eurobodalla Shire have had a tough two years since the Black Summer bushfires.
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COVID-19 has caused the cancellation of countless organised games for Shire-based teams over the past 24 months, and heavy rains in the same time period has made several of our sports grounds almost unusable for long periods of time.
That's why the Eurobodalla Shire Council has developed a project to 'future-proof' sport in the area, a project which launched at the Moruya Golf Club on Tuesday night.
Council's Recreation Development Coordinator, Tina Smith, said there were 45 people across 14 codes at the launch where clubs were given a 'resource kit' to help them moving forward.
"This came about after the impact of the bushfires, floods and COVID, and from the acknowledgment of the impact that had on our sporting community," she said.
"COVID has really changed the way people spend their leisure time, and that's had an effect on club sport.
"Council has a role to support clubs because we want our playing fields being used - we invest heavily in that infrastructure, and we want to see people using it.
"We went to clubs in May last year and January this year and asked them what they wanted us to do to help them.
"They came back and said they're struggling to find committee members, they were struggling to retain members and players, and they needed help with applying for grants.
"Clubs have lost seasons, they've lost members, and some of them have had the same committee for years."
The council took that information away and developed the resource kit, and a 25-document folder that clubs can use to help them develop strategic plans.
Ms Smith said the resource kit was deliberately broad in its scope as the Eurobodalla Shire has a range of clubs.
"A lot of our clubs are in different situations," she said. "We have some high-performing clubs who are going gangbusters, and we have other clubs who are down to just a handful of members.
"We don't have a one-size-fits-all approach, so the kit is there for the clubs to pick and choose from as they see fit.
"Tuesday night was about handing out that kit, but also about the bigger project of future proofing sport in the Eurobodalla Shire.
"The kit includes help for clubs to work to become a Euro 5 Star Sports Club, which are five reasonably simple steps we're asking clubs to complete to get an incentive voucher worth $500."
The next step for council is putting their boots on the ground. Staffers will spend June fitting in as many clubs as they can for visits and one-on-one meetings about how to properly use their resource kits.
Council also plans to develop a new structure, collaborating with clubs, to streamline the handover from summer to winter sports, and will put on biannual 'sport and recreation forums' to give clubs an opportunity to have their voices heard.