Casey Sharks Rugby League Club players Jermaine Manuel, Nooroa Joseph and Vincent Cecil-Daniel are thrilled to be able to call Casey Fields home. Picture: Stewart Chambers.By Marc McGowan
RUGBY league arrived at Casey Fields in a big way on Sunday, with the staging of several Victorian Rugby League Melbourne District matches.
In round 13 first-grade action, the second-ranked Doveton Steelers obliterated Waverley Oakleigh Panthers 52-10, while the fourth-placed Casey Sharks smashed the Sunbury United Tigers 34-0.
But the biggest news on the day was the switch to the region’s premier sporting facility, which should prove to be a massive boon for the game in the area.
Sharks president Numa Daniel said his club’s relocation to Casey Fields had been a long time coming.
“We have too many teams and we needed a bigger ground, so this will work out better for everybody – we’ve been waiting for this for a while,” he said.
“We’ve been stuck in a poor ground where no-one really knows who we are, but now we are moving to the Casey Fields complex, everybody knows where to go to.”
Casey previously played its home matches at Clyde Recreation Reserve’s Lineham Oval.
With only two rounds left in the season, the Sharks are looking towards the finals and are hoping to be able to hold a preliminary final at the new ground.
Other goals for the future are to attract marquee school and representative rugby league showcases to Casey Fields.
There is still much work to be done to complete the new rugby league ovals, most notably with the construction of a pavilion.
Casey mayor Colin Butler is excited to be able to cater for rugby league at Casey Fields and hopes to be able to add more sports in the coming years.
“The idea of Casey Fields was for it not to be just for major sports, but also for rugby and soccer, and maybe even baseball and athletics in the future,” he said.
“The feedback I got back yesterday (Monday) was that they were the best two rugby fields anybody will have in the competition they’re in, and that it was certainly the best facility.
“It is virtually only a field in the middle of Casey Fields at the moment, but we still reckon it’s a great facility.”
