House of Assembly - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2023-09-26 Daily Xml

Contents

Gibson Electorate Sporting Clubs

S.E. ANDREWS (Gibson) (15:32): I rise to give a winter wrap-up of the sports season in Gibson this year. I will start, of course, with my own club, Westminster Old Scholars Soccer Club, who field three men's teams and two women's teams. My team, the div 5 team, had our most successful season since I have been playing with them. We came second this season, and I would like to give credit here to our new coach for this season, Soukiie, who has been absolutely fabulous in guiding us. He provides a very clear message to our team and has an awful lot of faith in us. He has seen us rise to our best position yet. Thank you.

I would also like to thank our captain, Ange, who is entirely unflappable both on and off the pitch but has an absolute heart of gold and will do anything for her players. I would like to give a special shout-out to our men's As team, who are promoted at the end of this season to div 1 after a very successful season, and also to the Westminster men's reserves, who have also had an incredibly successful season. A special shout-out to my favourite nephew, Callum, who scored 13 goals this season.

On Saturday, the Marion Rams Football Club had an unprecedented three men's senior teams in grand finals. It was quite an outing, out watching three back-to-back grand finals for the Marion Rams. The day started off well with the men's C-grade winning their game, followed by the men's Bs, who also won their grand final, with a lot of pressure then being on the men's As, who unfortunately could not bring home the flag. It was an extremely successful day for the club, and I give my congratulations to the Marion Rams, which is another club in my electorate full of incredibly good humans.

Another shout-out, too, to the Brighton Table Tennis Club, which on Super Saturday grand finals brought home seven championships—an incredible outcome for our table tennis club. Brighton Bombers Football Club had a really tough season. None of the senior teams made the finals but, importantly, they are maintaining their status in division 1 and that in itself is a great achievement.

I would also like to give a shout-out to Brighton Rugby Union Football Club. Brighton Rugby has a really soft spot in my heart after my years as a child walking down to the club on a Saturday afternoon with my dad to watch his mate Adrian Bolton play. Adrian was a club champion, much revered in that club and remembered fondly to this day. I still enjoy the opportunity to go and support this local rugby club and also, where I can, to help by volunteering behind the bar. I have learnt how to pour a Guinness—it is not as hard as it looks.

It is worth saying that Brighton Rugby Union Football Club is our most successful rugby club in the state, winning 36 premier-grade premierships in the last 71 years—an extraordinary achievement for a club. For the second consecutive year, all grades made the finals series. The under 12s won the trophy with a last-minute try to win 27-26, whilst unfortunately the reverse happened for the under 14s, falling short in the dying seconds of the grand final.

The under 18s won their grand final and that was for the second year in a row, so big congratulations. More excruciatingly tight games followed for the seniors, with the thirds only just losing 27-25. Meanwhile, the premiers, who have won four of the last seven premierships, unfortunately did not bring it home this year.

I would like to take this opportunity as I reflect on the success of the sporting clubs in Gibson to acknowledge all the work that goes on behind the scenes. To the coaches writing training plans week after week, to people cooking sausages to raise some small funds for the club, to parents driving kids to numerous training sessions, washing dirty kit after muddy games, to those behind the scenes writing grant applications and to all those players playing your guts out for your team, week after week, I support you.