The logo for the newly-formed Hampton Park United Sparrows Soccer Club.
By Paul Pickering
DANDENONG’S Sparrows have landed at their new home at Hampton Park.
The Dandenong Sparrows Soccer Club steps into a new era this year after leaving its Dandenong base at Fotheringham Reserve to merge with Hampton Park United over the summer.
Senior players have begun training at the club’s Pound Road base under the banner of Hampton Park United Sparrows Soccer Club.
Club president Karen Walden said the merger would allow both clubs to grow and provide players with a pathway from junior to senior competition.
Hampton Park’s five senior teams played in the Bayside league last year, but those players will join forces with the Sparrows this year in Football Federation Victoria’s Provisional 1 South-East competition.
“At Hampton Park, we tended to lose juniors to other clubs, because they wanted to play FFV seniors,” Walden explained.
“And Dandy Sparrows, being located in more of an industrial area, found it difficult to attract and retain juniors, so we decided that it would be beneficial to both clubs to merge.
“That way the Hampton Park juniors have a pathway to play senior FFV football and the Sparrows senior teams have also got kids to feed into them.”
The new club recently launched its logo and will soon unveil a new strip. Prospective players can attend a registration day at K.M. Reedy Reserve, Hampton Park, on Sunday 6 March, or visit the club website at www.hpufc.com for more information.
