Junior sports could start from July 1

Deniliquin District Soccer Club junior soccer coordinator Peter Thompson said while a July start is promising, there is more to be organised at the club’s end before it can occur.

‘‘We’ve had preliminary committee meetings regarding the return date of July 1,’’ Thompson said.

‘‘We usually run our competition within the school term so that’s another thing we need to take into consideration.

‘‘Hopefully we can get something going. Soccer is the best game for the restrictions, with a big oval and the competition style suiting current restrictions.

‘‘We hope to have a schedule released as soon as possible.

‘‘We are looking at having games before the Wanderers games, once they start, just to get some extra excitement around the club.’’

Like the Deniliquin District Soccer Club, the Deniliquin Sports Stadium is so far taking a cautious approach to the return of junior sports.

Stadium manager John Arthur said it’s not as simple as naming a date.

‘‘We’re getting updates from governing sport bodies each week, and from there we will prepare return to play schedules for Edward River Council to review,’’ Arthur said.

‘‘Our stadium committee is working hard to ensure a return to sport is done in a safe manner.

‘‘It’s not as simple as announcing a July 1 return unless we do right by parents, juniors, officials and our staff. We don’t want to risk the health and safety of others.

‘‘We are keen to get going and will begin to look at the best way to do so. We also need to wait until all governing sporting bodies send through their recommendations.’’

So far the restrictions have had little impact on the Deniliquin Athletics Club, but coordinator Leanne Mulham said the season will have a later start this year as a result of the pandemic.

‘‘We had our AGM last week and discussed a possible delayed season start to ensure there isn’t a clash with football and netball, Mulham said.

‘‘We are potentially looking at having the season start in September, instead of the usual August start.

‘‘We have to be mindful of the delays to winter sport but make sure we have our plans in place.

‘‘We were very fortunate to have finished our normal season before all of the Coronavirus pandemic started.  Our only cancellation in winter has been a minor cross country race.’’

The Picola & District Football Netball League has floated a July 11 start start for the 2020 season, but that is still dependent on health and government advice.

The Murray Football League has made no announcements regarding a return to play yet.