WHYALLA is set reap the benefits of Port Adelaide’s partnership with Sanjeev Gupta of GFG Alliance which was made official last Saturday.
The lucrative five-year deal has already prompted conversations for an upgrade of Whyalla’s Bennet Oval, with the possibility of playing a JLT Community Series game at the venue in 2020.
Port will also travel to the regional destination for its annual Community Camp on Monday 18 February, where players and staff will visit schools, hospitals, nursing homes, kindergartens and football clubs.
The club will host a free junior clinic at Bennet Oval, while assistant coaches will run a coach education forum at Weerona Bay Football Club.
The day will conclude with a Sportsman’s Dinner at the West Whyalla Football Club, where all money raised will go back into local football in the region.
Speaking at Port’s partnership announcement day on Saturday afternoon at Alberton, Whyalla’s Mayor, Clare McLaughlin said the sponsorship between Mr Gupta and Port Adelaide would have enormous benefits for the Whyalla community.
“With the help of Mr Gupta’s sponsorship, we are going to see a growing AFL presence in our city which will include games, community camps, training sessions, life lessons, meet and greet days, sportsman’s nights,” McLaughlin said
“It really is like a percentage-boosting win for Whyalla.
“It is going to give our youth opportunities to aspire to, not just to play AFL, but to also take some healthy choices on whatever path in life they take, through the training and mentorship the Power are going to provide.
“It is also going to provide an economic boost to the city and an increased presence on the national landscape.
“When people watch television and see the Power playing a game or holding a community camp here, it will shine a whole new light on Whyalla.
“The whole of Australia will not only be seeing Whyalla as an AFL destination, they’ll also be seeing what we’ve got to offer in lifestyle, tourism and business opportunities.”
All details of Port Adelaide’s 2019 Community Camp in Whyalla can be found here.
