Special day for Magpies

SPECIAL DAY: The Brennan family will play a major role in the Kalangadoo Football Club's Mid South East Indigenous round of football and netball. Pictured are (back left), Tim, Jordan, Bobby (front left), Chuck and Alfie.

By Trevor Jackson

ALL eyes will be on the Kalangadoo Football Club this weekend as they host the Indigenous round of Mid South East football.

In what is believed to be a first for the region, a specially designed playing strip will be unveiled for both the football and netball sides.

Designed by club member James Brennan, the playing strip represents what the club and the region mean to the Brennan family and the community as a while.

A club statement provided the following statement from Brennan.

“The magpie is the emblem and the mascot that represents Kalangadoo.

It is how we describe ourselves; it is our song; it is who we are.

We stand strong and proud like the magpies on our guernsey.

The symbol on the chest represents Kalangadoo as a community and club.

It’s men, women, children and families coming together and being part of the Kalangadoo family.

The dot markings wrapping around the guernsey symbolises the journey.

This is showing that every season we have ups and downs, positives and negatives, wins and losses. Football is perpetual and as each season ends with the next is a new beginning.

The curved pattern in the bottom right corner displays all of the places people come from.

It signifies that people come from all over to be apart of the Kalangadoo community.”

Kalangadoo Football Club president Reece Carlson said the whole community was excited about the day, now in its fifth year.

He said the Brennan family was important to the club and as such had been recognised with the tim Brennan Medal for best on ground in the A Grade fixture.

“Every year we have wanted to grow the Indigenous round and get better,” Carlson said.

“We have three local indigenous families involved in the football club and one of them is the Brennan family.

“We named the best on ground medal after Tim Brennan and his young fellow James designed the jumper.

“We want to make the day as unique as possible.”

Carlson said the day was important to the club, which he hoped would be on display on Saturday.

“The Brennan family has been good to Kalangadoo for a long time,” he said.

“We want to give back to their family personally and the Indigenous community.

“We want to be diverse and welcoming as a club and make it one big family.

“It has been really good the last few years and you can see within the club, everyone is on the same page, everyone is happy and that is basically what the jumper represents.”

Carlson said as far as he knew this was the first time an Indigenous playing strip had been created in the region.

“As far as I know, no other club has done an Indigenous jumper from Tailem Bend down,” he said.

“The netballers have the same design on their bibs.

“I have been looking forward to this for six months – it has been in the pipeline for a while.

“It will be a great day for the football club and South East sport in general.”

A welcome to country will be conducted before the A Grade game by Tim Brennan, with the best-on-ground medal to be presented after the game in the clubrooms.

To add to the day the club will officially unveil a redevelopment around mid day, which includes female facilities after a recent government grant.

“We have basically built a new netball viewing area, a gym and new change rooms,” Carlson said.

“It has probably made the football club nearly three times bigger.

“We will have Nick McBride, Tony Pasin and Des Noll on hand to cut the ribbon.

“The thank you for the build alone will make it a big day, then adding the Indigenous round as well, it will be a massive day for the club.”