By RUSSELL BENNETT
THE St Francis Xavier Saints are all set up and ready to go – all the club needs now is players.
Beaconsfield’s newest footy club – part of the St Francis Xavier Old Collegians family – is set to enter the Football Integration Development Association (FIDA) competition for 2015.
It’s an Aussie Rules competition for players with an intellectual disability, and AFL Victoria has identified a huge need for a local club spanning everywhere from Dandenong to Pakenham.
Now the Saints are set to hold a second ‘come and try’ day for players who might be interested in playing in the FIDA competition in 2015.
Players involved in FIDA enjoy an environment that promotes fitness, fun, friendship and a rare sense of belonging and the Saints players will be part of a family-centred and well-managed local football club with a strong focus on respect and enjoyment.
Logan Whitaker, FIDA’s football administration manager, said the Princes Highway through Hallam, Narre Warren, Berwick, Beaconsfield Officer and Pakenham was a “huge growth area for us” and was just crying out for another club.
“We’ve recently gone through a mapping project where we identified where all the special schools and Auskick centres are, as well as where the current FIDA clubs are, and we’ve identified out this way as an area that we need to tap into more and more,” he said.
“We’ve got a team out Gippsland way and a lot in Melbourne. Cranbourne is a bit further south and we don’t have much out this way so it’s a really good opportunity to set up a new club with great people.”
Those interested in playing in the FIDA competition next year should head along to St Francis Xavier in Beaconsfield this Saturday 23 August, from 9.30 to 11am. Call Jen McKenna on 0411 774 512 for more information.
