November 25, 2019
The future is looking brighter for Kingaroy’s soccer players, thanks to a grant from the Gambling Community Benefit Fund and help from Ergon.
In September, the club learned the Gambling Community Benefit Fund had approved its application for a $35,000 grant to upgrade the floodlights on the club’s two training fields.
The grant has allowed the club to replace its old lighting system with energy-efficient LEDs, and extend lighting from its main grounds in Oliver Bond Street to two nearby training fields.
The project has been assisted by Ergon Energy, who helped the club install two new light poles late last week and ensured all the electrics were up to specification.
Project co-ordinator Mick North said the club couldn’t praise the Gambling Community Benefit Fund and Ergon enough.
“Over many years the Fund has helped us with a number of improvement projects on our grounds,” Mick said.
“When we started here 20 years ago the playing fields weren’t much more than a rough grass paddock.
“So what people see here today is really a tribute to a lot of work by a lot of people over two decades, plus a lot of help from organisations like the Gambling Fund and Ergon which have helped pay for the facilities or get them installed.”
Three Ergon staff and two specialised vehicles helped get the new lighting poles into position and tested as part of its own Community Support Program.
Mick said the new lights will allow the club to expand the range of sporting options it can offer.
“Some ideas the club is thinking about are an Over 35s competition and possibly a Mixed competition that could be run on weeknights,” Mick said.
“We could also run six-a-side competitions during the week for juniors, seniors, males and females.”
The club is also looking forward to opening an improved and expanded clubhouse before the end of the year.
This is thanks to a separate grant from the Department of Sport and Recreation, which is paying to get new men’s and women’s change rooms built at the Tom Alford Oval clubhouse.
Mick said that if everything goes to plan, the new change rooms are expected to be opened by Christmas.
