By David Nagel
LOCAL footballers and supporters are the big winners after an expansion to the 2012 WorkSafe Country Championships means the Casey Cardinia, Nepean and Ellinbank football leagues will field their own interleague teams this season.
With the expansion, there are now 32 Victorian Country Football League (VCFL) teams represented at the championships, which will take place across Victoria on Saturday 26 and Sunday 27 May.
Divisions one and two will consist of 10 teams, while 12 teams will fight out division three.
The 16 leagues that participated in 2011 have been ranked according to previous results, while the 16 new leagues will fill the bottom rankings. With Casey Cardinia and Nepean being ranked highest of the new teams at positions 17 and 18, a mouth-watering clash between the two at Berwick on Sunday 27 May looms as a season highlight.
The Ellinbank and District Football League (EDFL), ranked 28, will kick-off its VCFL interleague campaign by hosting Central Highlands at either Garfield or Nar Nar Goon on Saturday 26 May.
The expansion will have more of an impact on our region than any other.
Under the current system, the Mornington Peninsula Nepean Football League (MPNFL) was represented by the three leagues under its banner, Casey Cardinia, Nepean and Peninsula. With the number two ranked MPNFL team travelling to Shepparton on Saturday 26 May to take on Goulburn Valley for the title of Best League in the state, the loss of the Casey and Nepean players would have been a blow too hard to absorb.
With this in mind, the VCFL has allowed common sense to prevail, and players from Casey Cardinia and Nepean, who have been a part of the MPNFL’s rise to prominence in recent years, will be allowed to take part in the MPNFL team in 2012.
This means a full-strength team will travel to Shepparton with the Casey Cardinia and Nepean teams being selected from the remaining players. This will be phased out next year, and all three leagues will field full-strength independent sides in 2013.
MPNFL operations manager, Ian Benson, is excited by the new concept.
“The best thing is, it gives more players the opportunity to play football at that level,” Benson said.
“It’s worked out well with Casey Cardinia and Nepean playing each other this year, and we still have a full-strength team going to Shepparton.
“It’s exciting for interleague football moving forward.”
@BT Sub Sport Gaz:
2012 WorkSafe VCFL Championship Fixture
Division One
Goulburn Valley (1) v MPNFL (2)
Ballarat (3) v Geelong (4)
Ovens and Murray (5) v Hampden (6)
Bendigo (7) v Gippsland (8)
Murray (9) v Sunraysia (10)
Division Two
Central Murray (11) v Yarra Valley (12)
Bellarine (13) v Western Border (14)
Wimmera (15) v Mallee (16)
Casey Cardinia (17) v Nepean (18)
Geelong Districts (19) v Heathcote (20)
Division Three
North Central (21) v Lodden Valley (22)
Maryborough Castlemaine (23) v Horsham (24)
Ovens and King (25) v Picola North (26)
Central Highlands (27) v Ellinbank (28)
Mid Gippsland (29) v Alberton (30)
Picola South (31) v Kyabram (32)
