THE poor state of Mornington Junior Football Club’s facilities at Narambi Recreation Reserve in Mornington were raised in state parliament last Wednesday (3 June) with a group of players watching on from the public gallery.
Despite a masterplan being prepared by the Mornington Peninsula Shire for the club’s home ground in 2019, the junior football club is making do with clubrooms that are no longer fit for purpose, and a tiny transportable with two plastic porta-loos, and no running water, at the other oval where the girls teams play (MP and junior club call for urgent action on facilities, The News 19/5/26).
After visiting the facilities himself, Mornington MP Chris Crewther invited players up to Parliament House to shine a light on their need.
Crewther gave four members of the Bulldogs under 18’s girls squad and one member of the under 13’s boys team a tour of Parliament House, including meeting MP for Hastings Paul Mercurio and MP for Nepean Anthony Marsh in the Queen’s Hall for a chat and a photograph.
Crewther then entered the chamber, reading a speech calling for action on the facilities, as the player watched on from the public gallery.
Crewther called for the Minister for Community Sport, Ros Spence MP, to urgently visit Narambi Recreation Reserve to discuss funding towards the redevelopment of its “desperately inadequate facilities”.
“The club is one of the great local sporting success stories. It is growing quickly, it is inclusive and it is doing exactly what we want junior clubs to do,” said Crewther.
“In 2019 the Mornington Peninsula Shire prepared a master plan for Narambi. At that time, the club had around 120 junior players. Today it has 381 junior players, including 120 girls playing from under 12’s through to under 18’s. That growth should be celebrated.
“The club has fielded its first ever under 18’s girls team with special commemorative jumpers, with pink trim, to mark the occasion. I am pleased that some of those under 18’s girls are here tonight.
“At one oval, the club is relying on outdated clubrooms that are no longer fit for purpose. At the other oval, where many of the girls teams train and play, there is a tiny transportable, two plastic porta-loos, no running water, and no proper lighting.
“That means young girls are expected to use porta-loos in the dark. There is no running water for them to wash their hands. If players want to fill their drink bottles, they have to walk down to the bottom oval and use a tap also used to fill a dog bowl.
“That is not safe, dignified or acceptable.
“The club is not asking for a luxury. It is asking for basics with modern and safe facilities that match the size and the needs of the club.
“These are perhaps some of the worst facilities I’ve seen in the whole of the Mornington electorate. That is why this state government needs to step in.
“This government needs to find funding so that junior female footballers in Mornington and footballers generally do not have to use porta-loos in the dark.”
The night ended with the girls insisting Crewther participate in a TikTok for their social media account on the steps of Parliament House.
First published in the Mornington News – 9 June 2026
