Football is back for BPFC !
It ’ s been an almost unbearably tough two years living in the Hawkesbury , with COVID causing chaos and floods having a major impact on the community .
An area that ’ s faced the full brunt of these impacts is sporting communities . One such community that has had to push through is that of Bligh Park Football Club , which has finally began its 2022 season after 10 long months in the wilderness .
The 2019 season was a major coup for the club as it featured three sides making the exciting Grand Final Day at Jamison Park , Penrith in late August . While the Under 13s side suffered a defeat in the final , both of the All Age Men ’ s and All Age Women ’ s teams were triumphant in their finals .
The 2020 season began amidst some doubt in the trial matches . An overcast day for an All Age Men ’ s game , and the COVID crisis starting to grip the world – it felt as though this could be the last Sunday at their home ground Berger Road for quite some time . Fortunately , with lockdowns doing the job and reducing cases – the season was allowed to continue after some months off albeit , with the removal of a finals series at the end .
It felt as though things were back to normal in the world for a while , COVID was here to stay but we ’ d learned to live with it . June 2021 and the Delta strain had other ideas , forcing Australia into another mass lockdown . With more than halfway of the season having played out already , it was intended to continue until the year ran out of time as the lockdown continued .
An age went by and Bligh Park Football Club was finally ready to return back to the field for season 2022 before some crazy rain decided to derail those plans for a while – with Berger Road completely covered by water at one point .
On 23 April Berger Road opened its gates back up to the football season with the young teams all gearing up again . The following day was a happy return for all of the all age teams as all three men ’ s teams notched impressive victories to kick off the campaign .
One man who is happy to be back on the field is Ben Hams who is travelling from the Singleton area each weekend for his ‘ love of the boys .’ “ Look I was rusty but it was a good laugh ,” Ben said .
Teammate Russell Brown echoed his sentiment , “ it ’ s great to be back in the world of football .”
Unfortunately after three consecutive seasons , the women ’ s team appears to be out of action for this year due to a lack of firm interest . However , they are looking for people for 2023 !
Look up Bligh Park Soccer Club on Facebook to find out how you can register !
Royce ’ s Big Walk for dementia
Penrith Panthers legend Royce Simmons is embarking on a tougher battle than any of his 237 first grade appearances as he battles dementia .
He ’ s doing everything he can though to make sure anyone else suffering with dementia is not alone , as he aims to raise funds for dementia research and to raise awareness in Royce ’ s Big Walk which commences on Tuesday 17 May .
Several former rugby league stars such as Brad Fittler , Allan Langer , Paul Sironen , Steve Roach , Craig Gower , Robbie Farah and many others will be joining the ex- NSW and Australia representative on his 300km journey .
Certain stars will take their turns as special guest speakers at a series of functions being held in these local towns as part of Royce ’ s idea to help raise muchneeded funds for footy clubs around the areas where he played his junior football .
The long trek will stop at Canowindra , Cowra , Blayney , Bathurst , Lithgow and Katoomba before concluding at BlueBet Stadium for Penrith ’ s Friday night clash with the North Queensland Cowboys on 27 May .
The itinerary is stacked with a number of other events – including fund-raising sportsman ’ s dinners at Blayney , Lithgow and Katoomba , a junior coaching clinic , barefoot bowls and a ‘ meet the people ’ event at Simmo ’ s home town of Gooloogong .
Sixty one-year-old Simmons made the shock admission in January that he was suffering from dementia and soon after started organising this event . Funds will be channelled to Dementia Australia to go to much-needed research .
The 1991 Premiership winner is still
WITH PATRICK STAVELEY
Simmons while playing for Australia . Picture : Vintage Rugby League Facebook .
overwhelmed from the support that ’ s come his way since the announcement of his diagnosis .
“ The support has been unbelievable – from people in the street , to former teammates and friends from within the game ,” he said .
“ When I ’ m just walking around the place ( from Penrith to the foot of the Blue Mountains during daily training walks ) people yell out encouragement , which is appreciated .”
With the event supporting such an important cause in his own life , the impact of dementia as a disease on sufferers is not lost on Simmons .
“ Other than ( the event ) being more personal because of my situation with dementia , it ’ s the most important because of the impact the disease is having on society , and it ’ s only going to get worse ,” he said .
“ Only those who are impacted , or people close to them really understand the effect dementia has on families . It ’ s the second biggest killer in Australia and the largest for women .”
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THE HAWKESBURY INDEPENDENT theindependentmagazine . com . au ISSUE 144 // MAY 2022 37