Club now a sporting all-rounder

By Glen Atwell
ON 4 February 1977, the Noble Park Football Social Club (NPFSC) was formed in a rusty tin shed.
Important meetings took place when the weather permitted and Australian rules football was the only sport played.
Fast-forward 30 years and the club is now associated with nine sporting organisations that collectively coordinate thousands of participants on a weekly basis.
There is also a multi-million dollar extension currently on the drawing board.
On Sunday, the NPFSC recognised its 30-year anniversary with a small, but significant celebration with some of the club’s longest serving personnel. President Jim Laidlaw, who has been involved with the club for more than 10 years said the recognition was informal, but well deserved.
“The social club has grown from something small to what is the sporting hub of the community,” he said.
“It’s an amazing achievement.”
The NPFSC incorporates junior and senior football, lawn bowls, cricket, netball, tennis, angling, golf and basketball – a smorgasbord that would satisfy the most demanding of sportspeople. But the continued growth means the club’s facilities are at bursting point.
Mr Laidlaw said the club had recently renewed its lease on the Moodemere Street reserve and had grand development plans on the drawing board.
“We’ve been negotiating with the Greater Dandenong Council for six or seven years, but have managed to recently renew our lease on the site for another 27 years,” he said.
The NPFSC will self-fund stage one of its redevelopment and will push to have plans for stage two approved this year. Stage one, set to be completed this year, involves an upgrade of all facilities and the construction of extra meeting rooms to accommodate the various sporting codes.Plans for stage two are much larger and involve the construction of a VFL standard grandstand.
Mr Laidlaw said the pavilion would feature state-of-the-art facilities. “Everything from the showers to the changerooms would comply with the highest standards,” he said.
Keysborough Ward councillor Roz Blades said the NPFSC was something the community should be proud of.
“Everyone involved should be very proud of their achievements,” Cr Blades said.
“Noble Park is not a well off area, but the sporting club boasts facilities that would rival the best in the state.”
After 30 years, the Noble Park Football Social Club has come a long way from the rusty tin shed.