The tyranny of distance – it’s why Casey Council is calling for the AFL to bring more elite footy closer to its suburban fans in the growing South East.
But a 10-word parting shot by terminated Melbourne AFL coach Simon Goodwin on 5 August that “probably what I won’t miss is driving down to Casey” shows that distance argument runs two ways.
Goodwin was referring to the Demons’ training base at Casey Fields in Cranbourne East – about 50 kilometres from the MCG by car.
He hoped that a touted permanent base at inner-suburban Caulfield Racecourse would be “up and running soon”.
Last week, Casey mayor Stefan Koomen pleaded the case for more AFL “in the suburbs”.
“It is hard for residents in Casey to see their heroes play, which I fear is fast becoming a thing of the past,” he said.
“I’m talking about the journey for a Casey resident to see their team play—because from some parts of our municipality, it can take up to two hours to get to the MCG.
“That’s not just inconvenient—it’s a barrier to participation. We want our kids to grow up with access to elite sport in their own backyard.”
While the AFL has recently purchased Waverley Park and continues to push for a team in Tasmania, Mayor Cr Koomen said it’s time to look closer to home.
“We currently have the population of Canberra living in Casey, and in 15 years we will be the size of Tasmania,” he said.
“Why wouldn’t we expect the AFL to seriously consider what they can do for this region? They did it for Ballarat, and that’s been a success. Casey is next.”
Recently, Greater Dandenong mayor Jim Memeti called for an AFL stadium in the South East to boost the dwindled ranks of local Aussie Rules juniors.
“If the AFL are serious, they’d look at building a stadium in the South East,” Cr Memeti said.
“If the kids are going to games, they’ll want to play and this will increase participation.
“They need a stadium to attract the 1.5 million people in the South East – we don’t go to games of footy often because it’s now too far away.”
However Cr Koomen said Casey wasn’t asking for a new stadium but to “build on what we already have”.
Located in Cranbourne East, the multi-sport precinct Casey Fields is home to the Melbourne Football Club’s elite AFLW team and serves as their key training base.
Casey Fields hosts regular-season VFL and VFLW Casey Demons and Melbourne Football Club AFLW games, as well as pre-season AFL matches.
“Melbourne Football Club and the Casey Demons have been incredible partners—but they can’t do it alone,” Cr Koomen said.
“It’s time for the AFL to step up and bring elite footy back to the suburbs.”
One of Casey’s key advocacy points is to improve access to Casey Fields by extending the Cranbourne railway line to Clyde.
