Exciting times ahead for Wonthaggi Croquet Club

THE Wonthaggi Croquet club has recently been given the all clear on a new project that will see them granted brand new clubrooms by the end of the year.

Club Vice President Tom Lacey was in attendance at the council meeting back on December 14 last year to hear the verdict of the project, he spoke to the Sentinel Times last week. 

“The project was approved at the council meeting on December 14, most of the money comes from the State Government, then us, and then council do the rest, we’ve put in quite a lot,” he said.  

The Sentinel Times also spoke to club President Gerrit Kool and Treasurer Paul Andrews about the plans for the project and what is actually taking place. 

“We’re getting new clubrooms which will be situated where the old sheds are now and the new rooms will be very similar to the ones that Phillip Island got,” Kool said.

“It’ll be similar also to the new rooms at the tennis club, with a good-sized kitchen, huge amenities with a common area and dedicated storage and toilet spaces, we’re also getting a six by four storage shed for our equipment, there’ll be a veranda there overlooking the courts, huge glass windows!” said Lacey. 

The trio also explained what they hope the new facility will do for their club. 

“All of this will enable us to attract more members because right now, particularly with COVID, we can’t hold our general meetings in the current clubrooms,” they said. 

“There’s a little bit of kitchen space and not much else so when we run tournaments, it’ sometimes it’s a little bit embarrassing because we can’t have 30 people in there, but we will be able to once the new ones are up and running.”

The need for the new clubrooms and a bit of a refreshing update to their current, crammed space is obvious, and has been for some time according to Andrews, Kool and Lacey. 

“We get a lot of people come and play from all around Victoria really, we’ve had a couple of tournaments recently and the place has been chocka, at our last tournament, we had people from Lakes Entrance, Ballarat, Geelong, Melbourne and down in Mornington, so they come from all over,” they said.  

Construction on the new clubrooms is set to start prior to the end of the month and is scheduled to be completed by the conclusion of August this year. 

The three happy representatives also explained the many ways they’re looking to use their new and long-awaited rooms. 

“It can become a social hub, we play at least three times a week here, but with the new facilities we can hold our committee meetings, general meetings or come down and celebrate milestones and have social events inside in the new building and it won’t be weather dependant,” the trio agreed.

Croquet, although it may not be as popular as some other summer sports, has a famous and rich history and is well renowned as a game for all, especially in Wonthaggi where the club is thriving according to the trio.

“In itself, the club is going really well, it gets a bit quiet over the Christmas and New Year period, but it gets a lot of use, we have three club days a week, everyone has a key so anyone can come and have a hit seven days a week if they want to, we’ve got two pennant teams too,” they said. 

Andrews, Kool and Lacey are all extremely devoted to their beloved club and are looking forward to more projects and events in the future. 

“We will look at trying to get some lights in the next few years, that’s our next project, because you just have to light this small area and you’ve got bright coloured balls, it’d just look fantastic under lights,” Andrews said.

The WCC trio have done a mountain of work to get the project underway and all thanked each other as well as all of those who chipped in to get the development up and running. 

“Mainly we’d like to thank the State Government, MP Jordan Crugnale has been helpful and Brett Tessari when he was mayor, he was right behind us,” they agreed. 

“Also these two gentleman Paul Andrews and Gerry Kool who have both worked tirelessly on this project for at least four or five years,” Lacey said.

The Wonthaggi Croquet Club is located opposite the YMCA/Wonthaggi Pool off Wentworth Road and new members and players of all ages are always encouraged to come down and join. 

“It’s a game that’s suitable for all, from ages eight to 98 you could say, anybody and everybody can play, it’s a great game,” they said.