Moorebank dish up success for 40 Year Anniversary Celebration
With 150 people in attendance, including former Socceroos captain Paul Wade as guest speaker, the night was a major success, with former players and associates given a chance to relive old soccer memories and catch up with past friends.
?We had people catching up with friends they hadn?t seen in over ten years,? said Senior Executive Officer, Chris Norman.
?Everyone just came together and enjoyed a very good night of fun,? added Norman.
The large reunion and celebrations were made possible thanks to advertisements in local papers, The Daily Telegraph, Football NSW and MSC?s own website weeks prior to the commemoration.
?We wanted to make sure everybody involved with MSC now or in the past had the opportunity to share this celebration with us,? said Norman.
MSC was recognized by former Southern Districts President and Competitions Secretary at Football NSW, Larry Grant, with a plaque marking MSC?s 40 years in existence while Paul Wade added his experience to show value for the club?s amazing achievement.
According to Norman – who together with Treasurer Annette Krause was responsible for a large part of the night?s success -the aim of the night was to ?recreate the heritage and history to show current members where the club came from and developed.? The large amount of positive feedback from those in attendance suggests that this was achieved.
?People have told me that we [MSC] were able to pull the club back from history and present it in spectacular form,? said Norman.
In total there were 10 life members from the soccer code and approximately 20 from the sports code of Moorebank Sports Club, which were all recognized on Saturday night. Furthermore, the club produced a 24-page yearbook with everything from history to highlights, noting former club members and celebrating the heritage of the club. A large portion of the book was made possible by Bonnie and Maurie Jones, who were involved with the club from its beginnings and helped by providing clippings and accounts of the ?early days? of MSC.
Current MSC president and life member, Phil Sampson was quick to acknowledge those with a lengthy history with the club that attended the dinner.
?It was fantastic to see support from people involved with the club way back from when it began,? said Sampson.
Established in 1969 as ?The Clark Klin United Soccer and Sports Club? which catered for the sporting needs of children within the grater Moorebank area, the club became known as the ?Moorebank Sports Club? just a year later, with the Department of the Army allowing the club to use the old army parade grounds at Harris Creek. The club?s traditional strong ties with the army meant that a number of the club?s juniors had army parents.
In 1976 ? due to the club?s popularity of games played at Harris Creek ? Hammondville Park became the new home of Moorebank Sports Club resulting in great improvements with additions such as an amenities block, storeroom, canteen and flood lights.
After the ?soccer? code became a separate incorporated body a decade ago, Moorebank Sports Soccer Club Inc was born. The club currently boasts an amazing 64 teams with almost 800 players – an exponential growth from its mere seven teams and 98 club members back in 1970.
The goal of the club is and always has been to provide the opportunity for people to enjoy the game at their level and have fun, according to Norman.
With the success of Saturday night?s 40th anniversary, the club hopes to continue for many more years with the same philosophy.
?MSC is for everybody and we encourage everyone to join our multicultural community and be part of future celebrations with us,? added Norman.
-By Caetano Lima
