Senseless destruction: Parkmore Junior Football Club Auskick coach Steve Barnett assesses the damage to a beloved club painting after vandals pelted the heirloom with chairs and stools.By Glen Atwell
TWICE in two weeks.
That’s the heartbreaking reality facing Parkmore Junior Football Club after vandals smashed their way into its clubrooms for the second time in as many weeks.
A disappointing dose of deja vu greeted Auskick coach Steve Barnett when he arrived at the club on Saturday morning to discover the damage.
“I got a phone call from the security company at 5.30am and raced down to the club,” he said.
“I couldn’t believe it had happened for the second consecutive week.”
Vandals smashed a glass window to gain access to the Pirates’ rooms and embarked on a reckless rampage.
Stools and chairs were used to shatter emergency exit signs and a club honour board was a mangled casualty of the early morning madness.
But Mr Barnett said damage to a club’s heirloom, a painting of a pirate ship, was a tragedy.
“That painting belongs to the cricket club, but it’s an icon for everyone,” he said.
“We’re going to have a shot at fixing the cracks in it.”
Mr Barnett said the Parkmore clubrooms were an easy target for local vandals.
“There are no gates protecting the rooms and people can drive straight into the Wachter Reserve car park from Bloomfield Road,” he said.
“It’s an ongoing problem. People hang around there drinking during the night, who knows what they do.
“It is a big concern and something has to be done.”
Greater Dandenong Keysborough Ward councillor Roz Blades inspected the damage on Saturday morning and is determined to prevent any further attacks.
“We are speaking to residents, police and user groups of Wachter Reserve to find a solution to this problem,” she said.
“The possibilities are sensor lights, shatter-proof glass, loud alarms and installing gates.
“A locked gate is the last resort, but if that’s what it will take to ensure safety, then so be it.
“The council is considering every possible option to deter these predators,” Cr Blades said.
