Presidents Report – 27 January 2022

To everyone within the Marcellin community I’d like to wish you all a very happy New Year, let’s hope it is a better year for everyone than the last two have been especially.

This month’s edition is all about supporting those who support us.

I’d like to kick 2022 off with a reminder to everyone that without the support of those who help us, we would find it extremely difficult to put one team out on the paddock each week, let alone six teams and our two Bald Eagles teams. So in our day to day lives it would be great to support our valued sponsors which I’ll detail below.

It is also an opportunity to ask that the club is supported like most of us support our favourite AFL team by purchasing Club Memberships either through the Golden Eagles or General Membership offerings (which I will also speak about below). I can assure you that either yearly membership is not a major financial contribution but truly makes a difference in the grand scheme of things, and as Marcellin is our club I can hopefully count on your support in 2022.

2022 sees the club focus on building our sponsor base, as we need to do so, to cover the general day to day costs of running our football club. As we discussed at the AGM 2021 was a successful year for our financial department, however this upcoming year we cannot rest on our laurels and must source additional funds to continue to build our program.

Increased coaching costs from 2021, VAFA affiliation fees, trainers costs, utilities and many more areas will continue to be a burden on us, and instead of going the easy route and increasing players subscriptions we want to urge for your financial support to allow the club to keep pushing forward after two tough years.

CLUB SPONSORS 2022

This year we have structured our sponsorships into 5 categories, being Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze and Club.

PLATINUM SPONSORS

Andrew is a past player and we are wrapped to have him back involved.

I had the opportunity to play with Dunc’s in the 90’s and not only was he a terrific player, but a very loyal Marcellin person and a terrific fella to also add to his demonstrated history of working in the information technology and services industry.

Skilled in business planning, business case, IT strategy, management and contract management, Sorted is Australia’s first all in one marketplace – allowing you to connect everything you need for your home in one place

I encourage you all to have a look at what Sorted can do for you. I can guarantee you there is something there that will ultimately make your day to day lives so much easier.

Megan was referred to me by Peter Simpson, who ironically is Old Scotchs General Manager, but also a
long time Eagle so a huge thanks to Simmo for opening up the communications between us and AVC.

AVC owns and operates some of our best loved pubs, bars and event spaces. From landmark institutions to humble locals, you will find their venues in cities suburbs and regional towns across Australia

You would be surprised what venues AVC own and control, so I welcome you to have a look at their website as there are many local favourites there that we have all visited over the years.

I would ask that everyone in the Marcellin community downloads the AVC App and use it when you attend one of their venues as a portion of the money you spend comes back to the club.

If there are any folks in our community who organise functions or intending to have parties or in general a night out, I urge you to look at using an AVC venue and do all your purchases through the AVC app.

GOLD SPONSORS

Like Andrew Duncan, both Luke and Ben are past players with the mighty eagles and have come on board to support the club in 2022.

Fitzpatrick’s is a professional services firm specialising in the area of life and disability services. Whether it is income protection or life and TPD insurances as well as business insurance services, Luke and Ben will work with you so as to ensure you receive the best advice and support for your situation.

I strongly advise all our players especially, to talk to either Luke or Ben regarding income protection in particular.

Playing football whilst it is something we all love; it is sometimes the cause of being unable to work for extended periods. Fitzpatrick’s can work on a personally tailored income protection insurance that will ensure you will maintain having a wage/salary coming whilst you are unable to work.

SILVER SPONSORS

We have been fortunate to have Tony being a major sponsor of the club for many years now, and he has proven to be a terrific partner to our club during this time by also being part of the clubs Committee as well as a strong supporter of us.

Microcloud bedding vision statement summarises it all perfectly – At Microcloud, it is their passion to always strive for excellence and pass it on to you.

Their focus is exclusively on hotel quality bedding. With over 60 years combined expertise in designing and creating superb commercial bedding, they are committed to ensuring an enjoyable experience of luxury, comfort and relaxation.

Please ensure you contact Tony for any future bedding needs. A number of our players and coaches have already taken the opportunity to purchase from Microcloud and support Tony and the Microcloud team.

Like Tony, Adrian has been a mainstay of our club over many years and another terrific partner. He has supported the club not only financially but also as part of our Finance Committee in previous years, where his business acumen has been an important part of the club’s financial revival.

Woodridge is a family owned and run residential construction business, their enviable reputation is forged on sincere values, a team of first-class tradespeople and a culture of integrity, honesty and pride in workmanship.

Testimony to this, Woodridge has built over 80 new homes, and in a time when we are all overwhelmed by TV and radio advertisements, all of Woodridge’s work is by word-of-mouth referral or repeat clientele. So make sure if you are looking at building in 2022 and beyond, please ensure you have Adrian and his team front of mind when it comes to selecting a builder to partner you with possibly the most significant investment in your life.

Another past player, Paul was an Assistant Coach of our only Premier A Premiership team in ‘01 and the ‘98 Premier B Premiership, Chairman of Selectors, Bald Eagles premiership player ‘01 and most importantly a loyal MOCFC supporter

Paul, or Chooka as he is affectionally known as, has been MD of Donnellans since its start back in 1985, and now has stores in Blackburn, Balwyn, Collingwood and Preston. There is a store local for all MOCFC players, past players, supporters and families.

Donnellan’s have a huge range of tyres and wheels at Melbourne’s best prices, they really are the experts when it comes to tyres, wheels, brakes, suspension, wheel alignment and vehicle servicing.

I can guarantee you won’t receive a better tyre service anywhere or find better pricing anywhere, they are well stocked for tyre and wheels so whatever you are looking for they will have it in stock.

Please make sure you enquire with Donnellan’s when it comes to new tyres, and don’t forget all the add on’s they can provide you with to make looking after your car so much easier.

Paul has also been an extremely loyal member of the MOCFC family, being a major sponsor for as long as I have been back at the club. Tim as we all know is a very much-loved past player, Reserves Premiership Captain/Coach, current Assistant Coach with our Senior Women, recent Life Member and soon to be dad,

PMP offer a turnkey solution for specialist advice on self-managed super, business, tax and financial services

They can assist in building a plan that will meet your financial needs, be your trusted advisor for accounting systems, asset protection, finance and borrowings, federal and state taxes, tax effective structures and the tax issues in buying and selling businesses. With a high level of expertise on income tax, capital gains and GST they regularly provide guidance to clients on payroll tax, land tax, FBT and potential tax problems that can arise in not meeting superannuation obligations We all know how important it is to stay on top of our individual and business needs, so please reach out to the team at PMP to help get your finances in order.

We all know how important it is to stay on top of our individual and business needs, so please reach out to the team at PMP to help get your finances in order.

The Harp has been a constant go to place for MOCFC for many years and will continue to be.

There is something for everyone at the Harp. A family-owned hotel in Kew, offering a bistro serving lunch and dinner, every day of the week, a drive through bottle shop, sports bar & entertainment 6 times a week (Thursday’s excluded)

Function spaces for hire, suitable for birthday parties, engagement parties, Christmas parties, corporate events and everything in between.

Peter has looked out for the club during the period of being a significant sponsor of the club, and we need to ensure that the ongoing relationship will be mutually beneficial for both parties.

The community bank really is the people’s bank. Whilst we all know they are an alternative to the big 4, what we overlook sometimes is how much the Bendigo Bank reinvests into the community

Over $270 million in profits from their community bank partnerships has been reinvested in Australian communities since 1998, they really are the peoples bank

Every day the Bendigo bank and their customers help change lives and save lives. I expect it is not known to most, that their home loans are building skate parks and sports parks, hospital wings and carparks. Personal loans businesses banking and credit cards are funding ambulances, rescue boats, disabled and age care facilities, they are a community focussed bank that keeps giving to the community

I really encourage everyone in the MOCFC community to give the Bendigo Bank the last right of refusal when looking for a personal or home loan. I know the home loan industry is complex at the best of times as there are usually mortgage brokers involved to find an individual’s home loan but any loan that is taken out by someone within the Marcellin community greatly improves the support the club gets from the bank.

The dynamic of our club with the number of male and female players being registered, aligns perfectly with the Bendigo Bank as the Australian dream of owning your own home still exists. I really do hope that when looking for a bank to support you in what is now possibly the most significant investment people make in their lifetime because while the big 4 focus on their profits for their shareholders the Bendigo Bank invest their profits back into the community

Anthony’s football CV at Marcellin in both the Old Collegians and Bald Eagles is nothing short of incredible.

275 plus senior games, 5x Premiership player (Under 19’s 1984, Premier B 1985, Premier C1996, Premier B 1998, Premier A 2001 and Division 2 Bald Eagles in 2002). When I asked him about returning as a sponsor, his response was that MOCFC gave him so much, it was only right that he supported the club in return

Since 2000, Bronzeworks has been delivering unique metal finishing solutions to leading architects, designers, private residences, hotels, venues and corporate establishments. Our techniques of bronzing and patination are assuming a new importance in contemporary fine metal work and design. With offices in both Melbourne and Sydney, Bronzeworks provides a broad range of services including design, engineering specification, manufacturing, fine art metal work, architectural finishes, custom metal finishes, signage, sculpture, patina metal colouring and bronzing across Australia, and worldwide.

BRONZE SPONSORS

Currently we don’t have any sponsors in this category but we are continually on the lookout for any businesses that want to join the ranks of these great businesses. I would recommend any business that wishes to join as a Bronze sponsor to contact me and discuss our sponsorship pack.

This level of sponsorship is one where the sponsorship whilst significant to the club is more manageable to businesses, it also is a way of reducing the tax paid within the financial year, as all sponsorship are tax deductible.

CLUB SPONSORS

Martin is a past Assistant Coach at MOCFC and his son Jimmy also represented the club before his retirement at the conclusion of the 2017 season.

Club Warehouse is the ‘Supermarket of sports medical supplies’, 100% Australian owned and operated and again another loyal supporter of the mighty Eagles.

Vito is another past MOCFC and Bald Eagles player, and we welcome him as a Club sponsor for the first time in 2022. Vito’s son Frankie plays in the Under 19’s and has an extremely bright future at the club.

FLB provides comprehensive financial advice and services to private clients and small to medium businesses, and helps you ‘take control of your financial future”

Like my comment in the Bronze sponsorships above, Club Sponsorship is an ideal way for any individuals/businesses out there keen to support the club to jump on board and become apart of our great community.

If you wish to discuss Club Sponsorships please reach out to me at president@marcellinocfc.com.au.

MEMBERSHIPS

As I said at the start of this report, there is also an opportunity to ask that the club is supported (like supporting our favourite AFL team) by purchasing Club Memberships either through the Golden Eagles ($275) or through General Membership ($120).

Last year saw pretty much a 100% increase in Golden Eagles memberships and our numbers are now in the mid-60’s

We are a club who are entering their 54^th year in existence and, through this, have a large group of past players available. We need your support.

If it isn’t the Golden Eagles membership that you are able to support the club with, I’d really hope you would consider the General Membership level of support that we re-introduced last year and was a roaring success.

You can find any of these memberships in our ‘Shop’ option.

As I mentioned we all support the AFL clubs we follow with yearly memberships. This is OUR club and in these uncertain times your small contribution with a membership will significantly help the club going forward in 2022 and beyond. I strongly advise that the MOCFC and Bald Eagles communities get on board and where possible take out a yearly membership with OUR great club.

Looking forward to seeing you all at the footy in Season 2022

Regards
Dave Howe
Marcellin Old Collegians Football Club President