General News
20 October, 2022
Room to expand
THE recent purchase of nine acres of land adjoining the existing Pomborneit Recreation Reserve will allow its cricket club to construct a second oval.
THE recent purchase of nine acres of land adjoining the existing Pomborneit Recreation Reserve will allow its cricket club to construct a second oval.
The block, located on the Princes Highway on the southern end (Colac end) of the reserve, has ample room for a much-needed second oval for the club, as well as offering the opportunity to expand training and clubroom facilities.
The land has been owned by the Boyd family since the 1950s, with current owners Brendan (himself a former Pomborneit player) and Katrina Boyd happy to negotiate the sale of the block – which is on a separate title to the rest of their farm – with the cricket club.
“This is a very exciting time for the club as we look to capitalise on our growth in recent years,” Pomborneit Cricket club president David Murphy said.
“We’ve outgrown our dated training facilities and have needed a second oval for some time now.
“We look forward to offering facilities to cater for all our existing teams. The growth in our junior and female programs has necessitated the need to expand our facilities and we are thrilled to get the chance to do it at our home base at Pomborneit”.
Murphy said the purchase of the block had only been made possible through the “wonderful support of the club community, including our sponsors who contribute so well, our players and families who buy in to and support every aspect of the club’s operations, and our supporter base who are always backing us”.
Club secretary Luke Reynolds hailed the move as one of the most significant and important in the club’s history.
“Since moving to the Pomborneit Recreation Reserve for the 1932-33 season, our venue has been a much loved, spiritual home for the Pomborneit Cricket club,” he said.
“We’re proud to have stayed firmly entrenched in our rural locality; this land purchase cements the club in Pomborneit for the long haul and gives us the opportunity to expand our facilities to suit our mantra of a complete pathway of cricket for male and female cricketers of all ages.”
While the purchase is now complete, there is a lot of work to do to get a second oval up – a challenge the club is looking forward to.
“While the development won’t happen overnight, we are looking forward to continuing to work hard, fundraise and source grants to make our facilities as elite as possible and cater for all our cricket programs as soon as possible,” Murphy said.
