THE Mid South Eastern Football League is on the verge of announcing its 2020 junior season, with a draw anticipated to be a revealed as early as today.
It has been a long winter for fans, who have missed their weekly dose of country football, but the wait is almost over, with the proposed Limestone Coast combined competition and multiple junior competitions edging towards play.
For the young stars of the Mid South East competition, they could be back on the field in just over two weeks, with a grand final date locked in for September 19 to ensure the action finishes before school holidays.
The league will comprise of all three age groups, with Under 11’s, Junior Colts and Senior Colts on the list.
But the top junior grade is set for a change, with the Senior Colts age limit bumped up from Under 17.5 to 18.
MSEFL secretary Noami Mitchell said the board is ready to announce the full fixture this weekend with two dates locked in to be ready for all possible scenarios.
Kalangadoo is yet to confirm its plans, while Port MacDonnell was not in a position to field any junior teams.
Mitchell said the Magpies’ presence is the only question remaining.
“We have July 11 or 18 as a start date depending on the numbers and the make up of the teams,” she said.
“We will need to wait for Kalangadoo’s decision.
“It is just a waiting game at the minute to see who is officially in and out.
“Once that is done we should have a draw by the end of the week.”
The makeup of the Junior and Senior Colts finals series are also yet to be decided and will be dictated by the amount of clubs.
Without any Mid South East senior football in 2020 and only the Magpies interested in the combined competition, a large chunk of time and venues have been left alone and the junior competition is keen to take advantage.
Mitchell said up to four clubs could be on show at the one venue during the revamped junior competition.
“If we have an eight competition, we will be looking at four sides at each venue,” she said.
“There would be two Junior and Senior Colt matches at each venue, so it will be a full day rather than the traditional one match at each venue.”
Mitchell said the board made the move to give the rising starts an introduction to “prime-time football” and ensure country football does not lose its magic.
“We still wanted to create an atmosphere and bring people to the football,” she said.
“Some of the top of the table Senior Colt matches are probably the better game of the day, so it gives them exposure to an afternoon time slot and gets them used to being in the spotlight.”
Despite COVID-19 cancelling sporting competitions all over the world, Mitchell said everyone was determined to make sure the future football stars get a chance to shine this year and stay involved in the game.
“All the clubs I am aware of are really keen to re-engage their juniors otherwise you lose a year of development with the possibility of them not coming back,” she said.
“We really want to keep the kids engaged and get the parents coming back to the clubs.
“It is vitally important (to play) otherwise if we do not have a season, we could potentially lose kids to other sports because they will be looking for something to do.”
With the prospect of sirens ringing around country football grounds again, Mitchell said everyone is full of anticipation for the Sherrin to return.
“When we put the preliminary details out, everyone was very positive,” she said.
“So it is exciting for us involved in football because it is what we do and love.
“We cannot wait for football to be back.”
