PAIN IN THE GRASS
Footballers fall foul of wallaby poo on oval
Club wants action on animals as players suffer skin infections
WALLABY poo could be to blame for an influx of skin infections, including staph, at the Centrals Trinity Beach Bulldogs AFL club.
The club has been forced to issue medical-grade antiseptic to its footballers to use before and after games.
Bulldogs coach Mick Seymour said up to nine players had contracted bacterial skin infections during the past 12 months with the source of the bacteria believed to be wallaby faeces left on the footy oval.
“We haven’t been able to directly link it back to that, but we’ve had that many (sick players), it’s hard to ignore what the problem might be,” he said.
Agile wallabies regularly graze on the grounds of the Trinity Beach Sporting Complex, however their numbers have risen in recent years, as development in the suburb pushes them out of their natural habitat.
AFL Cairns boss Gary Young said the organisation was frustrated the club was facing the start of another football season with no wallaby management program in sight.
“We have other clubs not wanting to play at that ground, because it’s so bad,” he said.
“And we’re not talking about a little bit of dried poop on the side.
“Some of them are big, mushy dung piles that no one would like to have their face or body rolled through. No matter what we do, we can’t get on top of it.
“The wallabies sit there, waiting for us to turn off the training lights, and then they come.”
AFL Cairns has supported local conservationists’ plans to relocate wallabies from Trinity Beach to a private property, well away from human habitat.
“We’re not about slaughtering them or anything, the wallabies need to be moved on,” Mr Young said. “They need to be relocated.”
A damage mitigation permit that was initially awarded to conservationists for the relocation effort late last year by the State Government was later retracted.
The Department of Environment and Science says since then, it has not received any new applications for a permit. “DES has provided advice to Cairns Regional Council regarding its options for manag- ing the wallabies under Queensland nature conservation laws and will continue to assist council with advice where requested,” a department spokeswoman said.
A council spokeswoman said the council did not currently have an active role in wallaby management.