By ROY WARD
SHEPLEY Oval’s $1.25 million redeveloped change rooms could result in more representative football being played at the ground.
The state government and Greater Dandenong Council announced the redevelopment on Monday, with the ground level of the Shepley pavilion to be extended and improved with new change rooms, a bigger gymnasium and more medical rooms and offices being added.
An electronic scoreboard is already being installed at the ground and is expected to be ready before the TAC Cup season begins.
Dandenong Stingrays talent manager Mark Wheeler said the improvements would bring his club’s facilities up to standard with other TAC Cup clubs.
He also said the new rooms, combined with the ground’s admired playing surface, could put it in position to host AFL under-18 or under-16 national championship matches in coming seasons.
The ground already hosts junior interleagues matches and regularly hosts Vic Country under-16 and under-18 training sessions.
“You can see how good the playing surface is and it has been this way for the past three years,” Wheeler said.
“This is why they bring state players out here to train.
“With the new change rooms, rehab rooms and the ice baths — that does allow us to bring those sort of teams out here. There could be a chance we could put our hand up for these kind of games.”
The redevelopment will also benefit several other groups including football umpires, community groups and Premier Cricket side Dandenong Panthers, whose president Michael Findlay saying it would make the most of the facilities.
“As it stands, our change rooms are already a little cramped for a 12-man side,” he said.
“At the moment our lower grade sides don’t have a facility they can go to get a shower after the game.”
Visiting cricket sides currently use the change rooms which will be redeveloped, so Findlay said his club may swap change rooms, as the new rooms would be next to the gym and medical rooms.
The new electronic scoreboard will also see an end to the use of the manual cricket scoreboard which has long been based at the top of the ground’s grandstand.
“It will die a very welcome death and only be pulled out if the power goes out,” Findlay said.
