Preparations continue for Round 20 clash in Carnarvon

SOUTH Fremantle will be taking WAFL football to Carnarvon in Round 20 of this season to play Perth as part of the Country Sports Enrichment Scheme, and last week delegates from the Bulldogs and the WA Football Commission visited the Gascoyne town.

South Fremantle will be hosting the first WAFL match in Carnarvon since 2007 when almost 3000 people turned out to watch a thriller that saw West Perth beat the Bulldogs by just two points.

Now on Saturday August 6 of this year, South Fremantle and Perth will be locking horns in Carnarvon and preparations continue to surge ahead for the occasion.

Greeted by warm weather and warm hospitality in South Fremantle’s own Gascoyne region, a working party set about continuing plans to ensure the ground meets all WAFL requirements to hold an official fixture.

"There is a real excitement around the town and the community about our match later in the year with everyone really looking forward to the day," South Fremantle operations manager Michelle Miller said.

Miller took a trip to Carnarvon last week along with South Fremantle CEO Stuart Kemp and the league's operations coordinator Luke Sanders to ensure preparations are all on track for the first WAFL game in the town for almost a decade.

Another key benefit of the trip was the ability to meet with key stakeholders from the local community and from the Gascoyne Football Association.

"Cameron Perry’s help on behalf of the Gascoyne Football Association has been fantastic and with the help of the council and with the backing of the state government, the Country Sports Enrichment Scheme game between us and Perth should be a wonderful spectacle for the town of Carnarvon," Kemp said. 

Plans will continue to evolve in the coming weeks and months as the club looks to build two days' worth of events to support the local community and promote both the WAFL and the South Fremantle Football Club in the region.

"There is still a fair bit of work to finish before all systems are go," Kemp said.

"However we are well on the way to making the weekend of football work."