Rivalry benched in spirit of friendship

GROVEDALE and South Barwon will put years of rivalry on hold this Saturday when they line up for the inaugural Friendship Cup match.

Having spent the better part of their existence as fierce competitors both on and off the court, the Tigers and Swans were forced to figure out a way to work together this year due to renovations at Grovedale College.

The school is home to Grovedale’s netball courts, but with their home venue out of action, South Barwon came to the rescue to provide the Tigers with somewhere to call home for the 2018 season.

This weekend the new friendship will be commemorated with a special match, and Grovedale president Lauren Marino said it was a credit to both clubs how much progress has been made since the start of the year.

“This match came about because we’re sharing the netball courts with South Barwon this year, which at the start of the season wasn’t seen as a positive for either club because we haven’t had the greatest relationship in the past,” Marino said.

“But Melissa Hager, the South Barwon president, and I have become really good friends and we wanted to commemorate the fact that we have worked together to hold this special round.”

Netballers from both clubs will wear coloured ribbons in their hair, but in a twist, Grovedale will don the red, white and blue of South Barwon, with the Swans players to wear black and gold.

Marino said despite the intense nature of the rivalry that had existed before this year both clubs were supportive of the Friendship Cup initiative, which will also aim to raise money for the Leukaemia foundation.

“The relationship between the two clubs has come a really long way so I see this as a positive and our committee does as well,” she said. “They (South Barwon) have been amazing, and the football club has as well, so we really just wanted to commemorate that and we want to have this as an annual event from now on, too.

“The main aim for the day is the fundraiser and getting funds for the Leukaemia foundation through Matt Daniels. He is a good friend of mine and his son plays football for South Barwon so it was a nobrainer in terms of choosing him for our charity.

“So that’s our focus but it’s about having a good day and coming together as one and making sure we can donate as much money as possible.”