By Brad McGrath
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THE City of Casey has come under fire from a local sports clubs over a blanket ban on the use of grounds issued due to Friday’s torrential rain.
Casey Comets said they were the last people to find out that Comets Stadium had been ruled unfit to play on, with club secretary Robyn Murphy saying the ground was fine.
The Comets Men’s State League 2 outfit had been due to take on Mornington on Saturday afternoon but Comets Stadium fell under the blanket ban on the use of grounds.
Casey’s Victorian Women’s Premier League team’s match, scheduled for yesterday, was also cancelled.
“Council approached FFV first and they rearranged all the fixtures and then sent an email out,” Murphy said.
“We tried to contact them and explain that our ground was fine but it didn’t get anywhere – they didn’t want to have to rearrange the draw again.
“We’re not happy with two things. One, the council did it without letting us know. Two, FFV didn’t let us know what they were doing either.”
The Weekly was also contacted about the South East Juniors Australian Rules competition being cancelled.
A concerned parent said 90 per cent of grounds in the Casey region were fit to play on. The biggest concern was the lack of consultation with sports bodies before the grounds were deemed unfit for use.
The Weekly website, caseyweeklycranbourne.com.au, carried a story late on Friday about the SEJFL and Comets match cancellations, as well as several other schedule changes.
Murphy said all FFV junior matches in the Casey area had been rescheduled for next weekend, which has been put aside as a “catch-up week”.
The Premier League and Men’s State League 2 matches will be played on the weekend of September 8.
Neither South East Juniors general manager Shaun Connell nor the City of Casey could be reached for comment yesterday.
For all the latest breaking news, visit greaterdandenongweekly.com.au. Follow the Greater Dandenong Weekly on Twitter @DandenongWeekly.
