Local sport has a unique way of bringing people together and making a positive difference to the Ipswich community, but what happens when sport has to stop?
That’s exactly what Ipswich’s 150 sports clubs had to consider after COVID-19 social distancing restrictions were introduced last month, effectively shutting down the local sports scene.
But, the region’s sporting clubs and associations were determined to keep their communities together, so they turned to some out-of-the-box thinking using social media.
Andy Levett from Ipswich’s Last Man Stands social cricket club said they were putting a light-hearted spin on the current situation with ‘Show us your kit’ and ‘Dream team’ challenges.
“We have a very close knit community with lots of lifelong friendships formed over the years,” Mr Levett said.
“Last year we played 450 matches in Ipswich, with many players taking part in more than 100 games.
“We hope to pick up where we left off once all this is over.
“In the meantime, we are just trying to keep our players engaged in a positive way with anything other than virus news as it’s everywhere.
“Last Man Stands in Ipswich is a social form of cricket, so we generally try to keep it all very social and fun.
“It definitely helps our people as it’s the only sport a lot of our players do.”
Meanwhile, the soccer stars at Ipswich City Football Club have been staying fit and practising their juggling skills in a rather unconventional way with the #PlayAtHomeChallenge. Check it out below.
The Ipswich Eagles Australian Rules Football club has also turned to social media to keep footy alive in the community, as the club approaches a major milestone.
“Australian Rules Football has been played in Ipswich for the past 100 years in various grades and by various teams, so the COVID-19 outbreak has definitely left a very large footy-shaped hole in our community,” Ipswich Eagles president Clinton Bateman said.
“We are coming up to the 20 year anniversary of the Ipswich Eagles forming from the RAAF Amberley Eagles, so we’ve been revisiting some of the club’s biggest milestones which has been really great.
“Our local AFL community has been getting in on the fun, with lots of people getting involved with our social media questions where, for example, we’ve asked people to name their top three Ippy Eagles players from the past 20 years.
“The community was also very supportive of our annual Anzac Day raffle, which hit a snag this year when we couldn’t distribute raffle booklets out to all our players to sell.
“Obviously with the club in lockdown, this support has helped to get some money rolling back into the club’s account, for which we are really grateful.
“It just goes to show how great our local sporting community is; we rely on them, just as much as they rely on us.
“We’re also encouraging all our senior and junior players to stay fit and active so they’re good to go when we can all return to the eagles nest.”
This return may come sooner rather than later, as national cabinet last week agreed to put in place national principles to guide the resumption of sport, including at a community level.
In the meantime, local athletes – and anyone else wanting to stay fit and active while at home – can take part in Ipswich City Council’s Active at Home program.
