FOOTBALL
THERE'S a big blank honour board in Melton South's club rooms with the years 2011 to 2048 waiting to be filled.
But it's the presumption the club would always be there for the Panthers community that led to an extraordinary general meeting last Tuesday night, the second in as many years at Melton Recreation Reserve.
With just five committee members at the club, all stretched and frazzled, the meeting was called in a desperate plea for more volunteer input next season.
The prospect of moving from the Ballarat Football League to former home Riddell District Football League was also set to be debated.
The signs initially were good, more than 60 people filled the clubrooms.
But 30 minutes of home truths from club president Tyrone Charge to start the night painted a bleak picture for Melton South.
After reviewing the six strategic pillars a far smaller group had come up with in the corresponding meeting last year, Charge said none had been met.
He said the club had made no movement in the areas of junior development and resources, infrastructure and marketing, and most damningly, culture.
The president reeled off about 40 mid-week and game-day tasks that were being left to too few around the club, from timekeeping and waterboys to ground set-up, and even a lack of a bartender.
Charge implored those present to put their names on various sign-up lists posted around the room, where they could offer their efforts and times to manning each of the jobs.
Charge was frank, telling the members what the club's future would be without the volunteers.
"I don't mean to be dim, but this is reality," he said.
"We are kidding ourselves if we think Riddell league is going to be easy street."
And it was at that point the floor opened and questions went around the room debating the merits of staying in the Ballarat league or returning to the old stomping ground.
Tempers frayed, people swore, the majority favoured staying with the Ballarat league and not investigating other avenues when the room was asked for a show of hands.
But the protest continued and consensus was reached that the committee would look at more of the nuts-and-bolts of a potential move to the Riddell league.
Aligning the Melton South junior club with the seniors under the same umbrella was also debated, with the Riddell District Junior Football League's administration in attendance and chipping in on the discussion.
The Melton South juniors have started a dialogue with the Ballarat Football League about moving its junior teams in line with the senior ranks, while discussions with the senior Panthers are also set to start about club alignment.
The juniors and seniors are separate clubs, sharing little more than the name Melton South.
"I think the turnout really tells you people care and there's a lot of passion, that's the positive out of tonight but there's a long way to go," Charge said after the two-hour meeting.
"I think we will get [the volunteer] response, a lot of people are writing their name up. The help's the key and I hope we've achieved that tonight."
Melton South Junior Football Club president Tim Seymour said discussion of aligning the juniors and seniors was overdue.
"Up until a few days ago we hadn't even considered it [playing in Ballarat Football League], I wasn't aware of the history and there's a lot of things to go through. It's going to be up to the parents."
The final siren blew on the Panthers' season at the weekend, in the coming weeks the 2010 line at the very bottom of one club honour board will be filled.
How far down the next honour board the club gets is entirely up to its members. But fittingly, the club literally has a new clean slate to work with.
Another meeting has been called for Thursday, September 9 to further discuss the issue of which league the club sees its future in, with the possibility of a silent ballot to decide the matter.
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