From football to yoga, judo to squash, there were choices galore for kids and members of the local community to try their hand at in a collaborative event between the West Coast Eagles and the Town of Victoria Park, aiming to boost junior participation in sport.
Stalls were set up across the oval and carpark, with interactive activations giving all attendees an opportunity to participate in various sports on offer within the local community.
Rick the Rock was the star of the show giving out plenty of high-fives and photos, while Harvey Johnston, Loch Rawlinson, Callum Jameson and Coen Livingstone all got out of their comfort zone to try whatever sport each stall had to offer.
Community Engagement Coordinator, Kris Shannon, was thrilled to see the event come together so successfully with a terrific turnout from Victoria Park locals.
“Having so many different sporting organisations present and seeing every single one of them engaging with people and the even spread across the board was really good to see,” Shannon said.
“The purpose of the day really was just to get people, particularly kids, involved in different sports, so to be able to provide that in collaboration with our neighbours in the Town of Victoria Park made the whole event a great success.
“Rick was a huge hit and kids flocked over as soon as he came out which was really cool to see. Having Callum, Loch, Coen and Harvey present as well was awesome and the boys got really involved with the local sporting clubs which helps strengthen that pre-existing connection we as a club have with the local community.
“Working alongside the Town of Victoria Park to put an event like this together was great and now that we’ve got it off the ground I think there’ll be many more sporting clubs who want to get involved next year.”
The ‘Have A Go Day’ isn’t a one-off event, as the club works closely throughout the year with the Town of Victoria Park facilitating impactful programs and activations in the local community.
Town of Victoria Park Community Development Officer, Apu Karajagi, praised the collaborative approach in getting the event up-and-running for the first time and highlighted its importance.
“We spoke directly with sporting clubs and one of the main things they were after was an opportunity to get new members which can be really hard to do organically, so having an event like this where people can come to the one place and see what’s on offer really helps,” Karajagi said.
“Having it here at the Eagles’ facility is a great way to bridge the gap between local sporting clubs and West Coast and provides an awesome opportunity to make good connections within the community. It’s been so good working with the West Coast Eagles and without the support we wouldn’t be doing an event like this.”
The club will continue to work closely with our neighbours in the Town of Victoria Park to make a positive impact on the community in 2025 and beyond.
