CLUB NEWS & INTEREST

Club member Glyn 'Zooma' Owen was named the District Council of Lower Eyre Peninsula’s 2021 Australia Day Citizen of the Year.

Zooma first joined the Marble Range Football Club in 1978, and has been working towards improving the surrounding community ever since.

Zooma is a Player Life Member, and was made Life Member in 2001, with his achievements including: 15 years coaching, including four years as Reserves coach and four as League; eight years as League delegate and five years on the Junior Management Committee and 15 years on the Senior Committee.

Zooma led the way to voluntarily build new changerooms at the Wangary oval in 2015 after having been a volunteer on the construction of the original Maralinga shed changerooms when he first joined the club 43 years ago.

Zooma was instrumental in the 2018 oval canteen extension, making the area larger and more comfortable for spectators, and was also at the forefront to clean up and rebuild the canteen after a fire destroyed the internals in 2019.

In recent years Glyn was an integral leader in upgrading the kitchen at the Marble Range Community and Sporting Centre and it is now a top-grade facility volunteers are proud to work in. Zooma also organised the installation of what is now a much-appreciated shelter for spectators at the oval’s Bandy’s Bar.

Well done Zooma!

The Wangary Oval had new goal posts installed in 2020 thanks to volunteer work and a AHA Clubs SA SANFL Community Football Facility Fund grant.

Zooma Owen, Chris Puckridge, Simon Giddings, Anthony Boxer, Joel Denton, Chad Owen, Levi Smith, Ryan Gurton, Lance Appleby, Will (?) as well as Harder Transport, S & N Brown Earthmoving, Holcim, Lincoln Steel and West Cost Dismantlers.

The Club is lucky enough to use the Marble Range Community and Sports Centre's facilities, and that now includes a modern and efficient kitchen! Thank you to the community centre for getting this huge job done!

The 1978 A grade Premiership side held a reunion in 2018.

Did you know our scoreboard has had a makeover? A huge thank you to Matt Wilsen & staff, and Jim Casanova for the materials, time and effort you have put in to reclad the scoreboard.

Life Member Mona Puckridge officially opened the canteen extension led by club member Glyn Owen and his band of helpers in 2017.

The new shelter with built in heater, new dining sets and soft-fall flooring was a welcome addition for supporters young and old. Thank you to all volunteers & trades who helped complete the project.

Looking Back

The Pitchfork Gang - Joan Morgan, Ida Hull & Adeline Shepperd - were honoured with a plaque being installed at the site where they spent many years cooking 'savs' for football goers in 2014.

In 2014, after 30 years, our old change rooms succumbed to wind damage and it was decided to knock them down and rebuild. In two days the old rooms were demolished, materials stacked and sent to Adelaide for recycling.

Since then our team of builders, carpenters, plumbers, electricians, concreters, farmers, cooks (all mostly volunteers) have donated much time towards the project. Without the support of local business and contractors the project would be very costly.

2015 was a great year for our talented U17s with a premiership, coached by David Foster. Our U13s were again premiers, coached by Graeme Charlton Jnr.

The club's base at Wangary is an integral part of the football and social activities with Marble Range.

"Marble Range is very proud of its past and with its close association with the Marble Range Community Sports Centre is confident of the future of both our home ground at Wangary and football in general."

Looking Back