The newly revitalised stadium was open for one month before Coronavirus restrictions halted indoor competitions.
It was officially opened by Edward River Council on February 17 and closed its doors shortly after on March 18.
The reopening comes after government and health officials announced last month that both junior and senior sport could resume from July 1.
The action kicked off last night with mixed netball. Competitions will continue tonight with ladies netball and men’s basketball to be held tomorrow night.
Stadium manager John Arthur said since the announcement was made, his phone has been ‘‘swamped’’ with phone calls and messages from keen sporting participants.
‘‘Our numbers are outstanding,’’ Arthur said.
‘‘We have 10 mixed netball teams, eight ladies’ netball teams and six men’s basketball teams all ready to play.
‘‘Everyone is itching to get back out there.
‘‘I have sent messages to players to let them know what time they’re playing and the responses I’ve been getting have generally been along the lines of ‘I’m so excited’.
‘‘We’ve got umpires and helpers organised and are well prepared to get back into it.’’
The COVID-19 closure was a massive blow for the stadium.
February was the first time the facility has been used since being closed for the $1.5 million upgrade in August 2019.
The stadium barely got to showcase its new basketball and indoor netball facilities when the pandemic hit.
Arthur said those early games will be considered as practice, as each stadium sport will ‘‘hit the reset button’’ rather than resume their seasons.
‘‘We’ve only played three rounds of stadium sport since early August last year,’’ Arthur said.
‘‘That’s a lot of time without sports, so you could only imagine the excitement not only from me but from all the people who compete.
‘‘We can’t afford to have restrictions become stricter again so I ask everyone to be mindful and do the right thing.
‘‘If you do feel sick you should not play.’’
Arthur said to ensure the safety of players, ‘‘a few extra precautions’’ will be in place each night of competition.
‘‘We will be swapping netballs and basketballs often during games and have additional sets of bibs for netball just in case players change position,’’ he said.
‘‘It’s a lot of extra work but we want to do the absolute most to ensure everyone stays safe and stays healthy.
‘‘We don’t want to stop and start again. If we do the right thing, restrictions will continue to ease and we will get back to normal practices once again.’’
Spectators will not be allowed to attend games until further notice, and players are encouraged to go straight home after play.
8°C