SHARON CLAYDON, FEDERAL MEMBER FOR NEWCASTLE: Great to be here at Wallsend Number 1 oval with Nathan representing the Wallsend District Cricket Club, Deputy Lord Mayor Charlotte McCabe and the two Ward 4 councillors, Deahnna Richardson and Liz Adamczyk. It's always great when governments can come together to provide improvements and upgrades for local sporting amenities. And this is another one of those great examples. The Albanese Labor Government has contributed $285,000 towards the irrigation of this reserve and this playing field. And why is that important? Well, all the work is done by amazing volunteers here at the Wallsend District Cricket Club. And you know what used to take volunteers an entire hour to water, the services can now be done in seven minutes. And that is a great thing, because these people are, you know, they've got lots of other volunteer jobs to get on with to ensure that the cricket is being played at every level, across the fields here. So anything we can do to really lean in and help support grassroots sporting organisations like the Wallsend Cricket Club is a good thing. I really have to applaud the efforts of the Wallsend Cricket Club here. They've grown in strength, and they're you can see behind me today, they've got their women's team out playing on the field. They've really developed a group of juniors coming through, and have doubled what they had four years ago. So that's a sign of a great, healthy club. But they need good amenities to keep those people that they've recruited. So having a good playing service that surface, rather that can you know it's going to stand some of the tests of the weather coming up, is going to provide a level and much safer sort of playing surface for people is a really good thing. I'm going to hand across to Deputy Lord Mayor Charlotte McCabe to say a few words and Ward 4 councillors and then ask Nathan to bring it home. So over to you, Charlotte.
CHARLOTTE MCCABE, DEPUTY LORD MAYOR: Thank you. Sharon, it's great to be here to see the results of the irrigation upgrades at the number one oval for the Wallsend district Cricket Club. Want to thank Sharon Claydon, our Federal Member for Newcastle, and the Federal Government, for their contribution of $285,000 which, together which with Newcastle Council's $100,000 was able to deliver this irrigation upgrade. Obviously, good quality turf is essential for a good game of cricket, so I'm really hoping this is going to improve everybody's game.
DEAHNNA RICHARDSON, WARD 4 COUNCILLOR: I'm really pleased to be here this afternoon at Number 1 Wallsend Oval, to join with my federal colleague Sharon Claydon and my council colleagues as well to officially, I guess, recognise the completion of this particular project. There's been $100,000 of of Council funding that has gone into this project, in conjunction with the $285,000 from the federal government. And what this really demonstrates is that the strategic sports plan that City of Newcastle has put a really strong emphasis on grassroots sport out here in the western suburbs of Newcastle, and it means that planning work that has been done has meant that we're in a position to take up opportunities like federal grant funding that becomes available. I really wanted to thank Sharon for her advocacy as well in in and her support in delivering this particular project, it's going to make such a difference to the growth of the club going forward, and also the quality of the games that the players are able to participate in. And we'll make sure that there's less pressure, I guess, on volunteers and less of a demand for their time so that they can focus on growing the club, really investing in their time in grassroots sport and the development of their players into the future.
ELIZABETH ADAMCZYK, WARD 4 COUNCILLOR: Really proud to be here tonight with my colleagues from Council, the acting Lord Mayor, and also my federal colleague, the Member for Newcastle. Thank you to the federal government for providing this money. It's fantastic to see this open again, after the time that was taken to put the irrigation in place for the start of this season. And City of Newcastle proud to be able to contribute $100,000 to that $285,000 provided from the federal government. This is going to make the sport safer. It's going to make it more predictable for the club to get out here and be able to know that the field will be ready and prepped to play on. It will be a safer game, as you can see behind us, the walls and district women's team playing just a night. And I've heard that the club is growing in size, and this will give families confidence that they can send their kids along to join in the sport, to join the club, and to continue to grow that grassroots sporting interest and energy and passion that does exist here in the city in Ward 4.
NATHAN HOLLOWAY, WALLSEND CRICKET CLUB PRESIDENT: G'day, I just wanted to thank the federal government and the Council for assisting us here. Obviously, for both Wallsend Cricket Club and Wallsend Soccer Club, it would be a massive injection into being able to provide a safe environment for our people to play. Also, as as mentioned, the volunteers having the time cut down and being able to utilize their time elsewhere, doing other things which are important for the for the clubs as well. So really appreciate it. And thank you.
