A CONTRACTOR employed by Mornington Peninsula Shire applied the wrong treatment to four ovals in February, killing the turf, with user clubs still dealing with the aftermath and the shire facing extensive repair costs.
The wrong treatment was applied to RJ Rowley Reserve in Rye, Olympic Park Reserve in Rosebud, David MacFarlane Reserve in Sorrento, and Emil Madsen Reserve Oval 2 in Mt Eliza.
Anthony Ring, president of Sorrento Sharks Football and Netball Club, said he noticed the field deteriorating around four to six weeks after treatment was applied.
Ring said the poison applied is used to kill ryegrass on couch grass ovals but was mistakenly applied to ryegrass fields.
“Every other ground in our competition is couch, and they use it to kill off the ryegrass,” said Ring.
“Instead of not using that poison on the three rye ovals that are left in our competition, they just blanket-poisoned all the ovals, and unfortunately, it killed our oval.”
Ring said the shire outsourced maintenance on the oval a couple of years ago, and the oval has since been top-dressed with a clay-based sand.
“When that goes on the oval and is sort of compacted, it’s almost like making a dam,” said Ring.
“So, we had the effect of the poison and the fact that the water couldn’t drain away, and it became just a mud pit with no grass, basically.”
Ring said the club had to stay off the oval as much as possible, practising at other grounds or skipping practice to keep it safe for home game use.
“We had multiple soft tissue injuries where players were finding they’d have to adjust the way they ran on the oval compared to what you get on a normal flat level oval because it was so unstable, the surface underneath,” said Ring.
He said by November, however, the poison should have worn off and with some sun and maintenance, the oval should look good as new.
“There’s been some really big oversights and some really poor management at council level,” said Ring.
He said while the wrong treatment being applied was a “complete oversight and massive mistake”, the shire has been very helpful since the incident occurred.
“The council were apologetic, very apologetic, and they were owning the fact that they’d made a really big mistake,” said Ring.
“They were very receptive in having meetings with us and doing what we have to do to try and fix it, and keep it useable, keep it playable, and repair it going forward so it doesn’t happen again.”
Ring said he told the council he wanted to be advised of any maintenance or works occurring on the field going forward.
“They have to let us know exactly what they’re doing and when they’re doing it, which has been great,” said Ring.
The shire confirmed it has been working with the contractor to remedy the situation and will continue to until the issue has been fully resolved.
CEO Mark Stoermer said, “We’re aware of the significant angst that this has caused the community and we’re working with the contractor to remedy the situation as quickly as possible”.
The shire declined to comment on the cost of the repairs or clarify whether the contractor or the shire would be responsible for covering any expenses.
The News understands the cost is expected to be in excess of $1m, and attempts by the shire to make the contractor foot the bill have been unsuccessful, leaving ratepayers to pay for the contractor’s mistake.
The shire has also announced plans are underway to revitalise the oval at Truemans Road Recreation Reserve after a flock of cockatoos destroyed the turf.
The planned renewal project will include complete surface removal, major re-turfing, site preparation, turf establishment, and ancillary works.
The shire is working to secure the necessary funding to begin construction.
First published in the Mornington News – 8 September 2026
