Rosalie Viney a truly inspirational Volunteer star

Energetic, hard-working and well-respected Hurlstone Park Wanderers Football Club President Rosalie Viney knows what it takes to become a true volunteer – a face many people would recognise in the Canterbury & District Soccer Football Association.

The 56-year-old who is also the club’s women’s coordinator and newly appointed COVID-19 Safety Officer requires a large volume of volunteers to assist with their 1300 players across ninety plus teams, a mammoth task but one Viney has thrived in putting it all together.

“We are a large community club with around 1300 players across all age groups, and we are completely volunteer run.

“We have more than 90 teams and each team has 2-3 volunteers as coaches and managers and then we have many others such as age coordinators for each age group, our mini-ref coordinators, the committee members, and regular ground and canteen managers.

“We cannot forget the ones who put their hands up to help out with other activities like our Football4All Gala Days and other activities.

“So in a club of this size, I’d say that 20% of our members are active volunteers one way or another.

“This is one of the great things about community sport, it is a huge enterprise that runs on goodwill and enthusiasm to build connections and provide opportunities for kids and adults to play.”

Viney continued to heap praise towards her volunteers and the thousands in our sport who continue to work countless hours ensuring our game grows and develops in the right direction.

“They are the lifeblood of community sport.

“We simply could not do what we do without volunteers, and the economic value this volunteer input creates is huge.

“I also think that it is really important to keep a volunteer culture in community football and not allow it to become a commercial transaction for parents or players.

“These last few months has shown that so much, without our underlying culture of grassroots football, we could not have carried our players and parents through the huge uncertainty that we have faced, when our activities were suspended right at the point when the season was getting ready to start.

“And in the process of coming back to training, we have relied enormously on our coaches and managers, our age coordinators and our committee to solve problems, to be willing to take on new approaches, to communicate tricky things like new training schedules and procedures and to do it with a positive attitude.

“At the point that we expected training to begin, we surveyed our members about their willingness to return to training.

“Within a couple of days more than 50% had responded and 90% were positive about getting back to training.

“I think this speaks to the importance of sport but also to the effort that our volunteers put in season after season to build a great club culture.

“And most importantly, we have an incredible committee of people with passion and can-do attitude.

“Perhaps more than any other season this has stood out to me.

“In most other seasons, the roles are clear, but this season, we have seen people think about what problem needs to be solved, how to solve it and just get on and do it.

“I can’t thank them enough for this commitment to keep our club going and get us back on the park.”

It’s been all systems go ever since the green light was given for all Community Football to recommence its competitions from July 1, a date Viney and her colleagues rejoiced in.

“I think like many club administrators there were a huge number of mixed emotions.

“First of all relief that we could now give our members some information and make some solid plans.

“Then of course some anxiety about the number of things that had to be put in place and the logistics of getting us back on the park.

“Of course some frustration about the delay between the announcement for juniors and seniors.

“But most of all just “Yay, let’s get on with it”.

“We have just had our first training sessions and despite wet weather, limited pitch space, short training sessions, we were really happy to be back on the park and that was the overwhelming message from our members, both juniors and seniors.”

It was only natural that volunteer ambassadors such as Rosalie felt a huge absence when football went into lockdown mode when the COVID-19 pandemic first reared its ugly heard earlier this year.

Asked how she coped during the self-isolation period Viney replied to Football NSW.

“I can best answer this by saying that what I most look forward to after summer football is getting back on the full pitch and playing 11-a-side.

“We were just getting ready for the season before the suspension, and that was a huge change to our weekend routine.

“And while I have found other ways to exercise, there is nothing that replaces football.

“And of course there is also the community aspect of being around for our juniors and meeting new parents and players and following our teams through the competition.

“The other side of that of course has been watching football. We were so lucky that the W-League grand final was one of the last games of elite football played in Australia, but I’ve missed being able to follow the fortunes of the Matildas in international leagues.”

Her love for the game thanks to her early upbringing was for there to be seen by all – born into a sporty household, it was certain that Rosalie’s pathway would lead her to a sport, thankfully for us and the community, it led her to Football.

“I grew up in a sporty household and with parents who volunteered in community sport.

“So in some ways it was inevitable.

“What I didn’t know then was how much I would love playing. I remember the first realisation that when you play football you are running all the time, but also thinking (probably more often than not about what you should have done two minutes ago in the game).

“And the other thing I didn’t know was how much I would enjoy the community aspect of club football – there is nothing better than being at our park on a Saturday morning when the minis are playing and seeing their joy, and the enthusiasm of their parents and coaches.”

Football is certainly a family affair in the Viney household and it continues to thrive in more ways than one with Rosalie, her partner and kids all involved in the world game in some way shape or form – especially as volunteers.

“You got that right, football is a family affair for us.

“My partner has too many volunteer roles to count in our club. From coordinating the mini teams, being club registrar, club MPIO and club problem solver (should I mention training allocation, which is possibly the hardest task in a big club like ours).

“And has found the time and enthusiasm to send out a fantasy game summary to my daughter’s team (that he manages) each week during the suspension to keep their enthusiasm up!

“Both children have played since they were in the minis and are still playing. They have both been referees and both help out at the club and my older daughter is our Mini-Ref coordinator and mentor and has coached teams for many years now.

“I guess the volunteering gene persists.”