The 2025 season is just around the corner so EDFL Media will be previewing each club heading into Round One we chat to Westmeadows coach Gemma Wright who provides some insights on their 2025 campaign "Our biggest focus has been on building a strong team culture We’ve really concentrated on creating a positive supportive environment where everyone feels connected and motivated We’ve also received some great guidance from people outside of the program "Notable areas for improvement have been fitness and developing better connections between players We’ve worked hard on getting fit and building a supportive atmosphere where everyone feels valued Strengthening our bonds off the field helps us work better together on the field "A key lesson from last season was the importance of resilience but we learned that it’s not always about winning — it’s about how we respond to challenges Staying strong through the tough moments and focusing on our effort and growth.' "Courtney Bligh has taken on a new leadership role within the team She’s had a strong preseason and has truly stepped up in every way She’s embraced a new role within the playing group and is thriving in her return to The Cage bringing a fresh energy and leadership to the team." "Our goal this season is to build a strong positive team culture where every player feels valued By strengthening our relationships both on and off the field we aim to create an environment of trust and collaboration and supporting each other through tough moments." amazing for our senior women’s program and has put a lot of effort into our playing group Player most likely to become a coach one day such a positive person and would be great to see her lead a team in the future Sophi Georgantonis and Ruby Smith are hard to beat Success isn’t just about winning games — it’s about how we grow through challenges Westmeadows will enter Division One after a couple of tough seasons in the top flight There's a clear focus on creating a sustainable culture but you'd think despite losing some key players there is enough talent for some on-field success to be coming Westy's way It was a tough day for Westmeadows two women’s sides who both fell short in North West Metropolitan Cricket Association grand finals Continuing their strong form in the women’s competitions the Warriors made the Geoff Law and Georgie McElligott shields on Sunday the Warriors batted first against the Falcons The Warriors made 4-164 from their overs with De’arne Devereux top scored with 26 The Falcons put on 146 before losing a wicket to start their innings They were able to get the runs with an over to spare It was single wicket takers for the Warriors the Warriors faced the Greenvale Kangaroos The Warriors batted first and made 0-149 from their 20 overs The Kangaroos batted well early on to set up the win They finished 2-154 as they hit the winning runs with four balls remaining Nisuli Horana Gamage top scored with 33 not out at the top of the order On its first attempt with the planning minister MAB Corporation has won a long battle to develop a prime infill site near Melbourne Airport The developer bought the 41 hectare Westmeadows holding in 2019 For decades classified “buffer land” for a toxic waste tip to the west which closed in 2008 sought several times since to have it rezoned for development one proposal would have included residential the groundwater being contaminated to a depth of 15-25 metres MAB instead in 2022 approached planning minister Sonya Kilkenny with an industrial scheme a mega-parcel for a data centre and road infrastructure (artist’s impression of completed estate The group would also establish a 3.27ha buffer between the proposed estate the groundwater issue doesn’t prevent development Approved late last year and recently formalised blocks in the estate were this month listed for sale Branded Haystone, CBRE’s Daniel Eramo with Savills’ Mario Moscon are the agents (story continues below) between Melbourne Airport – often classified as Tullamarine – and Broadmeadows is 16 kilometres north west of Melbourne’s CBD The biggest Haystone block available for sale will spread three hectares The Wright St parcels are earmarked for a future release “With a total 3.3pc of freehold industrial land undeveloped within the Tullamarine precinct we anticipate a strong level of interest,” according to Mr Eramo Mr Mocso added “unlocking industrial land in Melbourne’s north has become increasingly difficult” with less than 2.8pc of Industial zoned land under a hectare undeveloped in the suburb and Westmeadows “The forthcoming land release…is likely the last opportunity promising long-term value appreciation due to these fundamentals,” he said Meanwhile across town in Clayton, MaxCap and Troon Group recently unveiled plans to develop a $200m industrial park on an ex-tip spreading 10.5ha over three streets Subscribe to our newsletter at the bottom of this page A former property analyst and print journalist Marc is the publisher of realestatesource.com.au Forgot your password? You will receive mail with link to set new password Back to login Craigieburn and Westmeadows both have work to do on day two of their Victorian Turf Cricket Association senior division matches both sides are on the back foot after day one of their matches The Eagles are battling with third placed Sydenham-Hillside at Hillside Recreation Reserve The Storm finished day one at 4-75 with only 70.3 overs being bowled Joshua Rasu was the only multiple wicket taker for the Eagles Westmeadows almost conceded first innings points on day one against Aberfeldie the Warriors were bowled out for just 113 in the 46th over Suresh De Silva top scored with 47 for the Warriors with Pathum De Mel the only other batter to score double figures Aberfeldie finished day one at 2-108 with first innings points in sight both Tullamarine and the Greenvale Kangaroos also have work to do The Demons were bowled out for 158 against top four side Grand United with Himesh Gajanayake top scoring with 33 The Kangaroos were bowled out for 102 against Sunbury Roxburgh Park is in a good spot after day one against East Coburg The Falcons bowled East Coburg out for 186 in the 63rd over Sean Pipe took three wickets for the Jaguars Donnybrook is chasing Pascoe Vale Central’s 220 Raja Sandhu took four wickets for Donnybrook Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time A fire that destroyed a 150-year-old heritage building in Melbourne’s north-west came weeks after contentious plans to convert it into a hotel were approved and is a suspected act of arson The planning permit granted in early December required the owners to restore the exterior of the 1866 bluestone Westmeadows home which was vandalised and became derelict in the months before the fire Firefighters at the Westmeadows property on December 30 Police confirmed they had deemed the December 30 blaze suspicious and opened an investigation which bought the four-bedroom property in 2020 notified Hume City Council it intended to repair the building and continue with its $13 million plan to turn it into a four-storey hotel and cafe Hume City councillor Naim Kurt, an advocate for the 19th century home’s preservation, said the community would hate to see a repeat of the Corkman Irish Pub saga, in which the owners unlawfully razed the historic Carlton hotel in 2016 and did not rebuild it “The hall burnt down just three weeks after a Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal ruling effectively placed a heritage badge on it through a conservation schedule That has raised a lot of suspicion in the community as it now means a lot of the heritage aspects are now no longer able to be documented,” Cr Kurt said community member Kaylene Wilson and other locals say the house was left to slip into disrepair.Credit: Wayne Taylor to be built on the location 10 minutes’ drive from Melbourne Airport was rubber-stamped by the tribunal on December 7 The approval came after months of community opposition last year with formal objections and a petition signed by almost 1000 people arguing the plans did not fit the character of the residential area Hume City Council subsequently unanimously voted down the permit application in May before ZZQ Investment Trust successfully challenged the council’s decision at VCAT once the head office of the Broadmeadows Shire was in reasonable condition when ZZQ Investment bought it for about $1.7 million The Westmeadows home’s living room when it was listed for sale in 2019.Credit: realestate.com.au The house’s condition has deteriorated over the past year – nearly every window was smashed wooden planks became detached from the floor doors were pulled from hinges and the grass grew to knee height encouraging him to install fencing to deter unwanted visitors as temperatures hit 34 degrees about 3pm on December 30 neighbours gathered at the property as thick plumes of smoke billowed from its roof It took 20 firefighters 45 minutes to control the fire A search of the site afterwards found no occupants A police spokeswoman told The Sunday Age that fire investigators regarded the blaze as suspicious “An investigation into the circumstances is ongoing,” she said said vandalism at the property was the work of youths and the residence and outbuildings were otherwise in the same state of repair as when his client bought it The Sunday Age is not suggesting that Mr Zhou had any involvement in the fire which was damaged by the fire.Credit: Wayne Taylor “The fire has caused nothing but cost and inconvenience to [Mr Zhou] due to the resulting Hume Council safety orders,” he said referring to the council instructing Mr Zhou to install fencing at the site since the fire a co-ordinator of the community campaign against the planned hotel said many nearby residents were devastated to hear about the damage caused to the building and were keen to see it repaired “We were opposed to the hotel because it will strip the area of its charm and there was almost no community consultation,” she said “It’s then been heartbreaking to see the historic building fall into a state of disrepair The council must make sure the developer rebuilds it exactly the way it was supposed to be.” Fencing and tape were in place on Thursday but had not been before the fire on December 30.Credit: Wayne Taylor Some community members were also infuriated by a Facebook comment posted by Hume councillor Jack Medcraft after the fire “Well I’m sorry to say it looks like the whole building will be demolished as it doesn’t look structurally sound and would cost a fortune to rebuild,” he wrote he wrote: “This place would not have burnt down if the original decision to approve the application had been given.” Smashed windows of the home’s bluestone exterior in the months before the fire Cr Medcraft told The Age that if the council had originally approved the permit meaning the building would have been secured Cr Medcraft was among the councillors who voted against the plans in May but appears to have changed his position In another comment he wrote “the owners are now waiting on CCTV footage and arson squad report” prompting accusations from community members that he was in communications with ZZQ Investment whose commentary has infuriated locals.Credit: Scott McNaughton Cr Medcraft said he was a friend of Mr Zhou and had “dealt with him before” because Mr Zhou owned a property in Sunbury “I’ve got no involvement other than knowing the guy personally I want the best for the town and that includes knowing who and what started the fire,” he said Council building surveyors have inspected the property and advised councillors that the building could be salvaged Cr Kurt said the house’s slide into disrepair reflected a failure of planning laws because the council had been powerless to force the owners to protect the site “It beggars belief that the site of a $13 million development wasn’t properly secured by the owners,” he said it’s likely the fire wouldn’t have occurred.” Fascinating answers to perplexing questions delivered to your inbox every week. Sign up to get our new Explainer newsletter here A fire that destroyed a 150-year-old heritage building in Melbourne\\u2019s north-west came weeks after contentious plans to convert it into a hotel were approved and is a suspected act of arson an advocate for the 19th century home\\u2019s preservation said the community would hate to see a repeat of the Corkman Irish Pub saga in which the owners unlawfully and did not rebuild it \\u201CThe hall burnt down just three weeks after a Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal ruling effectively placed a heritage badge on it through a conservation schedule That has raised a lot of suspicion in the community as it now means a lot of the heritage aspects are now no longer able to be documented,\\u201D Cr Kurt said to be built on the location 10 minutes\\u2019 drive from Melbourne Airport before ZZQ Investment Trust successfully challenged the council\\u2019s decision at VCAT The house\\u2019s condition has deteriorated over the past year \\u2013 nearly every window was smashed \\u201CAn investigation into the circumstances is ongoing,\\u201D she said \\u201CThe fire has caused nothing but cost and inconvenience to [Mr Zhou] due to the resulting Hume Council safety orders,\\u201D he said \\u201CWe were opposed to the hotel because it will strip the area of its charm and there was almost no community consultation,\\u201D she said \\u201CIt\\u2019s then been heartbreaking to see the historic building fall into a state of disrepair The council must make sure the developer rebuilds it exactly the way it was supposed to be.\\u201D \\u201CWell I\\u2019m sorry to say it looks like the whole building will be demolished as it doesn\\u2019t look structurally sound and would cost a fortune to rebuild,\\u201D he wrote he wrote: \\u201CThis place would not have burnt down if the original decision to approve the application had been given.\\u201D In another comment he wrote \\u201Cthe owners are now waiting on CCTV footage and arson squad report\\u201D Cr Medcraft said he was a friend of Mr Zhou and had \\u201Cdealt with him before\\u201D because Mr Zhou owned a property in Sunbury \\u201CI\\u2019ve got no involvement other than knowing the guy personally I want the best for the town and that includes knowing who and what started the fire,\\u201D he said Cr Kurt said the house\\u2019s slide into disrepair reflected a failure of planning laws because the council had been powerless to force the owners to protect the site \\u201CIt beggars belief that the site of a $13 million development wasn\\u2019t properly secured by the owners,\\u201D he said it\\u2019s likely the fire wouldn\\u2019t have occurred.\\u201D Fascinating answers to perplexing questions delivered to your inbox every week You can now click/tap WATCH to start the live stream You can now click/tap LISTEN to start the live stream You can now click/tap LATEST NEWS to start the live stream In slightly out of the way and rather quaint Westmeadows is a neat and compact  brick/saloon tavern servicing the locals and doing a most acceptable trade bistro (standard) and front bar (sports) are supported by a beer garden to the rear Local historian Ed McGuire pointed out that the old cop shop about a block away had Ned Kelly as one of its guests way back when The pub is owned and operated by the massive ALH group (there’s probably one near you) but increasingly there is some individuality in offer and at the Westmeadows the experience was most pleasant Genuine character in the front bar with lacquered tree trunks as your defacto table for drinks and resting elbows and if the pursuit of a tradie in the northern suburbs was needed by you then the cross section gives confidence that you would have found one enjoying a pot and Parma at lunchtime The Westmeadows pub is example 1A of the slow and steady change for the better in outer suburban pubs in Melbourne Two menus (bar/bistro) means there is a shave in bar prices of a couple of dollars from menus that do pub favourites and fall bang in the middle of acceptable pub grub Wine list is sufficiently expansive and fairly priced Grant Burge Cab/Sav @9.5 reflected a generosity in price and pour Perceptions are always hard to change but more fair play to the team out here as the pursuit of  better level of food and beverage is evident here whereas many years ago it would have been a secondary consideration (The long held belief being that pokies come first first and we’ll get around to the food/bev side of things one day) But while the menu is writ large across many other pubs of its type the Westmeadows is elevating the offer above the comparative pack and on a nondescript Wednesday recently Another surprise is the near extinct bar-fly (I thought long gone) holding court in the front bar Johnny greeted everyone with a ‘G’day Digger/Brother’ and then proceeded to give us a potted history of every pub from North Melbourne to here with a ‘you must know Harry Knakus You can get your EDFL footy fix across the whole weekend thanks to Streamer and 98.9 North West FM All three grand finals at Windy Hill on Saturday will be live streamed with Nena and Pasadena EDFL Match of the Day coverage for the Strathmore Community Bank Division Two decider between Taylors Lakes and Westmeadows The eliminating semi final between Strathmore and Greenvale in Strathmore Community Bank Premier Division will be covered on Sunday Details of each game and how to watch below AGA UNDER 18.5 MEN'S DIVISION TWO GRAND FINAL STRATHMORE COMMUNITY BANK DIVISION TWO GRAND FINAL STRATHMORE COMMUNITY BANK PREMIER DIVISION ELIMINATION FINAL MAB corporation has bypassed Hume council and is seeking to the planning minister’s approval for three planning permits to develop the notorious former Tullamarine toxic landfill “buffer land” in Westmeadows Through three draft planning permits MAB corporation is collectively seeking approval for the subdivision of land (34 lots) use and development of land for a warehouse and data centre and reduction in car parking The draft planning permits and draft planning scheme amendment are currently with the Department of Transport and Planning and the minister is considering whether to prepare The process means Planning Minister Sonya Kilkenny will be the responsible authority for the application MAB corporation sought to build on the land as part of an amendment to Hume’s planning scheme but the plans were rejected by a majority of Hume councillors in a 7-2 vote Council received 326 submissions on the proposal the majority of which were opposed to it as they argued the buffer land was needed to protect existing residential areas from the former landfill site This most recent planning scheme amendment is the fourth proposal for the Western Avenue land in recent years but is the first time it has been taken directly to the planning minister An environmental audit in 2014 found the land’s groundwater was contaminated to a depth of 15-25 metres and found that the land is suitable for industrial and sensitive uses including residential as long as construction did not interfere with the groundwater and access to landfill monitoring boreholes on the site was maintained Planning documents submitted by MAB corporation in 2022 stated that the land was no longer needed as a buffer between the landfill and existing houses and was safe to develop Terminate Tullamarine Toxic Dump Action Group secretary Helen Van Den Berg said the health concerns from residents are not being heard and is calling for a public transparent process regarding the best use of the land Here the only thing that matters is the profitability of a developer,” she said “We got inflicted with a toxic dump for the benefit of industry in Victoria We’re still exposed to airborne toxic chemicals from the dump’s stack Now we’re supposed to take further impacts from development “… How much burden does this community have to take We want a fair process that considers our concerns Residents can have their say until 5pm on Wednesday, May 10 via shorturl.at/oqy56 The Westmeadows War Memorial is set to be enhanced and restored to uphold the legacy of war heroes for generations to come $890,000 will be spent across 34 community groups to support the conservation of war memorials and honour rolls across Victoria Greenvale MP Iwan Walters said the funding will go a long way in honouring Hume veterans past and present “This grant will enhance the Westmeadows War Memorial ensuring the legacy of the Anzacs who first trained in Broadmeadows and all veterans can be honoured by the Hume community for years to come,” he said Veterans Minister Natalie Suleyman said the grants are an important mark of respect “We’re restoring and upgrading memorials and community building – to preserve the stories history and value of Victorian veterans and their loved ones,” she said the Woodend RSL Sub-Branch will receive funding to upgrade their facilities while The Australian Catholic University will receive funding to create Victoria’s first-ever dedicated veteran students and family hub which will support veterans in their university studies The Restoring War Memorials and Avenues of Honour Program is available to community groups to conserve and maintain war memorials Fourteen organisations will receive funding under this program including Ballan RSL Sub-Branch to restore the historic Barrys Reef WW1 Avenue of Honour Hume council mayor Naim Kurt said “Hume has a proud connection with the Anzac story as many of the original Anzacs trained in Broadmeadows “This grant will enhance the Westmeadows war memorial so the Anzac legacy and all veterans can be honoured by our community for years to come” The Northern Saints resurgence continues with a 24-point win over Westmeadows on Nena and Pasadena EDFL Match of the Day Northern Saints coach Tamer Abdallah joined the crew with player of the game Nick Bruno (and the rest of the team!) Check out EDFL Podcasts in your browser or listen below It was a triumphant return to form for Westmeadows in 2019 qualifying for its first finals series since 2016 The Tigers ended the home-and-away season with a 10-6 record after producing five consecutive wins between Rounds 2 and 6 which included impressive victories over both of last year's Division 1 grand finalists Their season ended in the Elimination Final at Windy Hill where local rival Tullamarine pulled away from Westmeadows in the final term to win by 33 points Dane Tannenberg (East Keilor) & Aaron Vendramini (Craigieburn) Mahmoud Taleb (Northern Saints) & Dale Willmott (Therry Penola OB) While the Tigers are still on the hunt for another ruckman Hardly anyone of particular note has left the club since the end of 2019 while the likes of Jayden Ranno and George Nabbout are known commodities coming into the line-up for this season A formidable forward line combined with a classy midfield led by reigning Hutchison Medallist Robbie Castello (pictured) will hold Westmeadows in good stead as it sets out to challenge among the top contenders in Strathmore Community Bank Division 1 New car park lighting and landscaping will feature into the plans for an upgrade of the Westmeadows Shopping Precinct A total of $189,750 will go toward the project on Fawkner Street as part of the state government’s Growing Suburbs Fund “I’m thrilled the Government continues to support our growing community through investing in even more projects like the upgrades to Sunbury Park and Westmeadows Shopping Precinct,” Sunbury MP Josh Bull said Elsewhere in the electorate of Sunbury new ninja course and fitness area will be constructed at the Forrest Street Reserve and a new playground will be built at the Village Green Reserve in Sunbury Westmeadows and Greenvale smash recordsChristine De Silva 16 Kings College Court, Attwood, was snapped up for a record-breaking $1.275 million in August THE market in the Hume region powered through 2017 with properties selling for record-breaking prices and beyond owners’ expectations Attwood achieved a new record house price after the $1.275 million sale of an impressive family home on August 26 The result exceeded the previous record by $200,000 and smashed the owner’s reserve price set before the auction Barry Plant Gladstone Park director Phillip Mercieca said four bidders competed for the four-bedroom house at 16 Kings College Court. “It was a record result for the suburb,” Mr Mercieca said you’re talking almost $200,000 more than what they wanted.” Mr Mercieca said the result on the final weekend of winter made a fitting end to one of the best winter property markets he has seen in his time in real estate we are very excited to see what spring brings,” Mr Mercieca said SUBURB PROFILE: ATTWOOD the $1.5 million splashed by an Ashwood family set a new benchmark price for the suburb 7 Hillcrest Drive, Westmeadows, sold for as record-breaking $1.5 million The sale of the 1980s house on a 2423sq m block at 7 Hillcrest Drive on September 28 eclipsed the record set by the property next door The three-bedroom house on a 2444sq m block at 9 Hillcrest Drive sold in May 2014 for $1.175 million CoreLogic records show the property at 7 Hillcrest Drive was purchased by owners two years ago for $875,000 The price jumped $675,000 in two years or $28,125 a month Jason Real Estate’s Pierre Hadchiti said the result was completely unexpected “I was gobsmacked by the price mainly because it was a restricted property,” Mr Hadchiti said CoreLogic records reveal the property is the second sold for more than a million dollars in Westmeadows this year. A five-bedroom house on a 1635sq m block with a pool and tennis court at 35-37 Wills St was snapped up for $1.05 million in February SUBURB PROFILE: WESTMEADOWS Mr Hadchiti said the market was booming in Westmeadows which was following the trend set by nearby Airport West and Keilor “There has been strong capital growth here in the past 12 months as demand is increasing for homes in the area,” he said CoreLogic figures show the median house price in Westmeadows has lifted 13.1 per cent to $560,000 a Greenvale home with a reserve of $1.45 million sold for $1.56 million under the hammer which is the highest price paid for a property in the suburb this year 6 Cupar Place, Greenvale, changed hands for $1.56 million Five families vied for the four-bedroom clinker brick house at 6 Cupar Place Jason Real Estate director Jason Sassine said the buyer’s final offer smashed the reserve CoreLogic figures reveal Greenvale’s median house price increased 12.8 per cent per cent to $600,000 Mr Sassine noted that the suburb was beginning to be recognised as an affordable place “It’s still very affordable for what you can get — a lot of house and a lot of land,” he said “And buyers are now really starting to acknowledge this.” SUBURB PROFILE: GREENVALE third parties have written and supplied the content and we are not responsible for it completeness or reliability of the information nor do we accept any liability or responsibility arising in any way from omissions or errors contained in the content We do not recommend sponsored lenders or loan products and we cannot introduce you to sponsored lenders We strongly recommend that you obtain independent advice before you act on the content realestate.com.au is owned and operated by ASX-listed REA Group Ltd (REA:ASX) © REA Group Ltd. By accessing or using our platform, you agree to our Terms of Use. Ash Flavel will take the coaching reins at Westmeadows next season in the Essendon District Football League division 1 The Tigers announced on Wednesday that Mo Kaakour had stood down from the senior coaching role having been appointed assistant coach for Richmond’s Victorian Football League side The club said in a statement that Kaakour will still be at Westmeadows next season “We would also like to announce that Mo has accepted the role as director of football at our football club and will stay on to guide our senior men’s and women’s programs,” he said “In this role Mo will oversee both programs taking a position on the committee as part of the executive leadership team “We are excited to welcome Mo onto our committee and look forward to his contribution as we continue to strive for excellence at all levels “Having a pathway into the elite level is something we have been aiming for and we are looking forward to the opportunities Mo’s new roles will offer to our junior boys and girls programs.” The club said that after Kaakour’s appointment that they did an internal review of their coaching group which resulted in the club appointingAsh Flavel as senior coach “Ash has been a part of the senior coaching group since 2021,” the statement said “Along with the rest of our coaching staff he has been instrumental in the development of our young group Stability and consistency is our priority as we continue “Ash has a long history within the competition having played over 250 games of premier Division football “His coaching experience consists of playing assistant coach at Epping Football Club and forward line coach for both Pascoe Vale and Glenroy football clubs as well as senior assistant coach for Westmeadows Football Club for the past two years.” The 2024 season is just around the corner so EDFL Media will be previewing each club heading into Round One we chat to Westmeadows coach Ash Flavel who provides some insights on their 2024 campaign "A big focus has been continuing to improve our fitness and team chemistry while making the football club a place where our current players and recruits can enjoy their footy and develop." "We have recruited a few and brought a few one-pointers back to the club but we have made it a big focus to retain our list "If we look at our list from our last game of last year we’ve added a few who we feel can make an immediate impact at the senior level." I can list 15 blokes as we have a young list and I can’t wait to see what they can do – especially considering all the work they have put in over the preseason." "The aim is to play in a final and go from there The group is putting it on themselves this year to perform While the ending wasn’t what the club was after there were a lot of promising signs at the back end of 2023 What impact did those last few games have on the group with two good wins and a close loss It was a promising finish with some convincing wins The form some of our boys ran into heading into the end of the season is something I want them to continue to build on You had to contend with a mass exodus in your first preseason at the helm what differences have you noticed within the group heading into 2024 We feel that moment in time has built some resilience within the group and the club but we have put in a lot of work to get where we are now and I love the respect that they show each other and the work they all put in to be better The aim is to continue to build on this chemistry One opposition player you’d love on your side There would be quite a few from each side id love in our side Jake Watson (Roxburgh Park) & Sean Andrews (Oak Park) Out: Finbar Delbridge (South West Sydney Blues) Alexander Aleksovski (Whitehorse Pioneers) Ibrahim Hammoud (Glenroy) & Patrick Worden (Hadfield) It was a tough season for Westmeadows who had to contend with a mass exodus from their semi final side of 2022 but the young group showed some positive signs to finish the season The Tigers were a fighting chance of avoiding relegation but they'll feel renewed in Division Two with a chance to regain some on-field success They'll be similarly unpredictable early on like Glenroy which could play into their favour Ladder Prediction: Could be in the finals hunt A name has been decided upon for a long-awaited community centre in Westmeadows it was decided to approve the name of Valley Park Community Centre for the building at 44 Village Crescent in Westmeadows The centre is scheduled to be ready at the end of June this year Councillor Joseph Haweil spoke to the centre as one that will greatly benefit the local community “This is a new and long advocated facility in that part of the world which will make an excellent contribution to the lived experience and wellbeing of residents,” he said “This name will be easily identifiable for its location and purpose He said he visited the site of construction previously and was impressed by the prospect of the centre “It will be a smaller scale facility than we’re used to in Hume we are building megastructures all over the place,” he said “It’s one of the smallest we’ve done in many years… but it will be very well utilised by the community.” Council opted to base the name off the Valley Park estate so they didn’t run any community consultation The facility will provide spaces for important local service and program delivery playgroups and spaces for residents to enjoy shared activities and help build a strong and connected community in Westmeadows The awards continue to flow for Westmeadows Cricket Club Having claimed the Victorian Turf Cricket Association north-west A1 premiership the Warriors were among the big winners at the competition’s best and fairest night Warriors captain-coach Tarek Moughanie took home the Steve McNamara Medal for the best player in the north-west A1 division Moughanie finished the season with 708 runs at an average of 47.20 which included two centuries and three half centuries Moughanie said it was the perfect way to end the season “Ultimately you want to win the premiership first and anything else is a bonus young star Aaron Evans finished equal eighth on 16 votes Moughanie said Evans almost claimed the club championship award Moughanie was voted by his peers as captain of the team of the year He said being adjudged the best captain by the fellow players was an honour that carries a fair bit of weight Sathpath Kamburugamuwa was also named in the north-west A1 team of the year Moughanie said the focus for him now was to take that level of form into the higher grade with the Warriors to be promoted to north-west division “It really motivates me to have a good year next year,” he said “I haven’t been able to stay consistent for two years for a while.” The Warriors have already started looking to next season The club has signed former West Indian international Darrel Brown Brown has been playing cricket in Australia for a number of years most recently at Balnarring in the Mornington Peninsula Cricket Association “We’re all older and playing for not as much money It’s about creating quality memories together “Darrel is really fit at the moment and runs around like a 30-year-old not a 44-year-old.” Moughanie said they had more younger players to come through next season as well The Warriors women’s side was also recognised at the VTCA awards night The Warriors started the season with one team before forming a second side due to player numbers Danielle Linton was the women’s best and fairest with her sister Natalie Linton finishing runner-up Sonja Viehl was named as coach of the season Westmeadows Football Club celebrated round nine as their annual pride round This is the second instalment of pride rounds for the club in an effort to raise money for the Pride Cup Pride Cup is an organisation that promotes the changing of sports culture to support the LGBTI+ community Westmeadows took on Moonee Valley at Willowbrook Reserve in their seniors reserves and under 18.5s but unfortunately was not able to register a win To raise funds the club held raffles and a ‘stride for pride’ event The club will continue to raise funds through donations and merchandise sales until June 23 Westmeadows player-coach Gemma Wright said it’s an important initiative for the club and broader community “We have a lot of people that are a part of the LGBTI+ community,” she said including from different races and religions “[It’s important we] celebrate inclusiveness throughout our community.” Both Westmeadows and Moonee Valley wore special pride apparel including a jersey worn by Westmeadows and socks worn by the opppositon Dane Swan is returning to Westmeadows Football Club The Tigers this week announced that the 2011 Brownlow medallist would pull on the boots next season while North Melbourne premiership player Corey McKernan has been appointed a high performance coach Swan and McKernan both played their junior football at Westmeadows before successful AFL careers Swan confirmed on radio on Tuesday morning that he would be returning to the Tigers before an ankle injury forced him to retire at the end of last year as I’ll be travelling,” Swan told Triple M “I’ll give something back to them … it’ll be a bit of fun my uncle is on the board and my other cousin plays there “I might play one [game] or I might play 10 games Tigers president Gareth Hanlon said if everything went to plan Swan would make his debut in round two against Tullamarine before playing on Anzac Day four days later “It’s been a very exciting few days,” Hanlon said “It is very special to have someone come back to the club who started their career at the club “We’ve been lucky to have a number of players play at the highest level including Corey McKernan and to get one back playing is massive for the club “The impact he will have not only on the senior list but with our under-19s is massive He brings a lot of experience to the club.” Hanlon said they were still unsure how many games Swan would play next season but they hoped he would play enough to qualify for finals Swan’s cousin Aaron Ramsay has also signed with the club Ramsay most recently played with Essendon District Football League club Essendon Doutta Stars in 2015 He was joint winner of the league’s Reynolds Medal in 2006 for the best premier division player McKernan has been appointed as a high performance coach having been around the club in unofficial roles the past few years He’ll also assist with the club’s sponsorship and marketing “He’s had a successful football career and been successful in business,” Hanlon said “He has been involved at the club during my time here and has helped run sporting days and our grand final eve event.” Hanlon said getting back two former players was part of the club’s focus on being a community club Westmeadows has also signed ruckman Jesse Bowe Hanlon said there would likely be a few more recruits to be announced later in the pre-season Mullen is playing in the country next season Dane Swan didn’t disappoint in his return to his junior club Westmeadows at the weekend The former Collingwood champion and Brownlow medallist pulled on the boots for the first time since a foot injury ended his AFL career in round one of 2016 and he was greeted by a big crowd at Willowbrook Reserve Swan is keen to help out his junior club and play a few games with them this season but for a few hours on Friday it didn’t look he would get out on the field because of his injury payout from the AFL After some hard work by Tigers’ high performance coach and former AFL player Corey McKernan The Tigers lost 15.15 (105)-10.5 (65) but Swan said it was “awesome” to be on the field “It was awesome to come down and give something back to a club where it all started for me but thankfully common sense prevailed and they’ve let me come down and do my thing and hopefully the footy club gets something out of it It’s disappointing we didn’t get the win.” Swan started forward before moving into his usual position in the midfield He finished with 24 possessions though he didn’t think he used the ball well “I think footy has passed me by,” he joked after the game “I started a bit rusty … first kick went sideways “It felt awesome to be back out playing sport “I didn’t get smashed off the line and apart from the legs and lungs Swan said he enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere of playing local football and he was impressed by the standard of the competition Swan was king of the people after the game signing plenty of autographs and posing for photos Footy Show mates Sam Newman and Shane Crawford with the Tigers facing Glenroy on Anzac Day But that game clash could be his last – the AFL only granted approval for him to play two games “I’d love to [keep playing]… We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.” Women’s cricket continues to grow at Westmeadows the Warriors are on track to field three sides this season New women’s coach Danny Law said it was an exciting time to get involved in women’s cricket “We’ll be potentially hitting the mark for three sides,” he said “We’ve still got some time to recruit a couple more players It’s an attractive proposition coming down to play at Westmeadows this season marks a change from spectator to coach of the women’s side obviously my wife Emily plays and I’ve really enjoy the cricket on the Sundays and watching the girls improve over the journey “There’s been a bit of disappointment the last two years getting into finals and not quite getting over the line “I thought I would put my hand up and contribute and help them get over the line this year “It’s a new challenge and I’m fairly confident we can go one better.” who plays for the Warriors first XI men’s side He was captain-coach of the men’s team for three years After having a break from coaching he’s ready to get back into it but also working with some of the younger players that are coming through the club the women listen and take things on board more than the men.” Law said there had been a mixture of new players to the sport and people looking to change clubs who had come on board The top side will play in the Victorian Turf Cricket Association competition while the second side will play in the North West Metropolitan Cricket Association Law said if they were to get up a third side He said anyone interested in playing was welcome to come down and give it a try “We’ve got some new players who have never played before it’s exactly what it was two years ago and it didn’t stop us from playing finals “It’s no barrier for someone who has never played before The Warriors will be without captain of the past two years and former competition medal winner Danielle Linton for the start of the season as she recovers from a knee reconstruction Law said they were hoping to have Linton on the park just before Christmas Westmeadows starts its season this weekend Work is under way on the $160 million redevelopment of the 1980s-built Mews public housing estate in Westmeadows Local dignitaries gathered in Westmeadows last week to celebrate the land transfer agreement between the state government and Hume council that has allowed the social housing project to go ahead 210 private homes and 34 independent living units Prior to the development there were 94 public housing properties The project is being jointly delivered by the state government and Australand Baptcare will also develop and manage a 90-bed aged-care centre on nearby government-owned land A number of those beds will be made available to public housing tenants Baptcare’s affordable housing expert John Timmer said the 39-hectare development would create 100 jobs with an anticipated return of more than $5 million to the local community through additional wages He added it was unlikely the estate would attract the stigma usually attached to social housing “This project will comprise about 30 per cent public housing tenants with the balance being owner-occupiers or private renters “The mixed community [housing] will be built in such a way as to ensure public housing is indistinguishable from all other housing.” Demographics indicate a growing need for accommodation for the elderly The Mews comprised mostly three-bedroom stand-alone dwellings while the new development will offer independent living units and two-bedroom houses Construction is now under way on the first four stages of the development The first social housing tenants will move in in November Liberal candidate for Northern Metropolitan Region Gladys Liu and Liberal candidate for Sunbury Jo Hagan joined representatives from the City of Hume Baptcare and Australand to officially open the Valley Park display centre last Monday to celebrate the land transfer agreement Westmeadows has added some fire power to its forward line with the signing of Rex Hickman for next year’s Essendon District Football League division 1 season The Tigers announced earlier in the week that Hickman would join the club as a playing assistant coach most recently with Bacchus Marsh in the Ballarat Football League Hickman said he was looking forward to joining the club on a post on the club’s social media “I live 500 metres from the ground and for the couple years I have lived there I have loved the idea of being a part of the club,” he said “My wife and I had a son earlier this year and the thought of him being able to grow up with a footy club so close to home is great and even better if it was a club I also got to play at and be a part of “So with that in mind I jumped at the opportunity to be a part of the club I’ve always had a desire to step into coaching.” Hickman said being a teacher by trade that he was big on communication and building positive relationships “I enjoy helping others and seeing people develop,” he said “I am appreciative that the club has given me this opportunity to be an assistant and support this group as best I possibly can moving forward.” losing in the opening week of finals to eventual grand finalist West Coburg The former Shire of Broadmeadows building in Ardlie Street won’t be purchased by Hume council despite the community calling for the site to be kept in the city’s hands The site at 11-17 Ardlie Street included a bluestone building which councillor Chris Hollow described as a “meaningful” and “historical” part of the municipality he asked council officers to investigate buying the site to keep it in public hands and preserve it for the future after residents raised concerns about the site’s future the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) approved a planning permit for a residential hotel on the site after the application was rejected by council in April 2021 The application attracted over 250 objections from the community with many residents concerned about the development’s impact on the heritage values of the bluestone building The property was put up for sale via an expression of interest process in June 2022 But a report to council’s August 22 meeting recommended not buying the site which has an estimated price tag of $3.5 million to $4 million The report said that while some in the community wanted council to buy the property for its heritage values council’s June 2019 application to have the building added to the Victorian Heritage Register had failed with the Heritage Council finding the building was “not rare or uncommon” Cr Joseph Haweil said council’s budget did not make provisions for the purchase of the site or the cost of works to make the property suitable for use “Unfortunately this business case … does not come close to adding up for the purchase of the site by Hume City Council,” he said “The historic and heritage vale of the building by the assessment of [Heritage Council] experts “We don’t know the impact of the fire we don’t know if the building is salvageable we don’t know what council’s … liability would be and we don’t know what the building would be used for “It’s timely that we draw a line under this issue … and we work to ensure the current permit holders deliver on the specifications and conditions of their permit.” Cr Hollow urged council to consider buying the site saying some “creative thinking” was required to determine a future use for the site He said council was looking to revitalise Westmeadows and the site could be used for a global learning centre “We as a council group need to consider this,” he said Westmeadows is hoping it will be third time lucky in the Victorian Turf Cricket Association women’s competition The Warriors won through to a third straight grand final on Sunday and are hoping that they can go one step better this season and take out the premiership the Warriors will enter the grand final undefeated after beating Sunbury in a semi final on Sunday Westmeadows coach Danny Law said the group was pretty happy to be back in the grand final “We played well and we’ve done a lot of hard work,” he said “We spoke about how much the last two years hurt and we don’t want that again It will mean so much to the club and everyone involved if we can win “We talked about it after the game there’s a few new faces in the side that don’t have scars from the last two years the Warriors put in a strong performance with both the ball and bat to take the win with Sunbury 0-23 and looking to put a good score on the board Law said they were able to regroup and get things back on track as they bowled the Roar out for 57 “The first five overs we didn’t bowl the best and bowled a few too many extras,” he said but the next 15 overs we bowled and fielded really well.” Skipper Danielle Linton was the star with the ball Law said having Linton back on the field late in the season was a big plus for them “She was around the club when she wasn’t playing but having her on the field lifts the girls.” Law said the focus was on taking their time He said they needed to stay focused with small run chases sometimes the most difficult ones “The opening partnership [between Emily Law and De’arne Devereux-Arena] put on 30 and didn’t take any risks saying the side could have easily have got the runs just one wicket down Westmeadows will face Keilor in the grand final after the Blues won through in unusual circumstances With the ground not playable due to heavy rain the previous couple of days Keilor and St Andrews had a bowl off to decide who would go through to the grand final Keilor won 1-0  and will now play in a grand final in its first season Law said they weren’t taking anything for certain “The last couple of years we’ve gone in as underdogs,” he said but it doesn’t matter in the end with cricket being a funny game They have improved on both occasions we’ve come against them With the 2023 season just around the corner EDFL Media will be previewing each club heading into Round One we chat to new Westmeadows coach Ash Flavel who provides some insights on their 2023 campaign "Our biggest focus was to retain our young boys coming through the junior system and bringing the younger boys through which creates opportunities for them in a year that we've lost a lot of experience due to playing premier football or them moving on to another competition So it's about playing these younger boys and bringing them into the senior side "And the most important was getting them really fit over the summer to able to be in games longer and get them through the season with hopefully not many injuries as our depth will test us once we start to get a few injuries "When you lose 16 out of your first semi final side from last year The one thing that I wanted to bring into the club was good culture that was something we lacked last year within the playing group All it does it just gives these kids more game time and it has shown already in our three practice matches." As I said before losing 16 blokes from the senior first semi final is always going to hurt you "We have got our spine in really good shape and we have just built around that with plenty of leg speed to complement our talls "I’m really happy with the list we have now I could have done with a bit more depth in the midfield but the club is being very careful now in how we spend our money on players I think we will have one of the best CHF / CHB & RUCK combos in the division "So we just need to build around these blokes and our younger brigade will only get better each week." "There are quite a few to look out for this year I know not many clubs would be rating us with all of our departures and Aaron Evans are all going to be a good watch "Our young guns to look out for would be Jake Hatton and Kieran Gallagher (Calder Cannons) who have had all big pre-seasons and I cannot wait to see them grow this year I can name so many more that I’m excited about "With the senior older heads to look out for and recruits "To get more gametime into the younger boys is something we're aspiring to and to build a great culture on and off the field Just to get the boys really enjoying their footy and wanting to get better who knows where this young group can take us if we bring the intensity to each game and sustain it long enough I’m sure will be in a lot more games than not "We're aiming to keep getting better as a playing group and as a club." James Taglieri (Eltham) & Shaun Knott (Eaglehawk) Out: Mohammed Yassine (West Preston-Lakeside) Tyrone Foggiato (Albanvale) & David Ranno (Albanvale) It was a summer to forget down at Willowbrook Reserve with an array of key departures following a fourth-placed finish in 2022 They were knocked out in the first week by eventual grand finalists West Coburg and couldn't quite take any scalps of a finals side but it goes without saying that it'll be a new look Westmeadows side running out in 2023 New senior coach Ash Flavel is no stranger to Westy being part of the coaching group since 2021 and is rather bullish on how his young side will go in 2023 We'll get a good look on how they'll go with an expected tough first month or so of footy Westmeadows has set about filling an experience void at the club as the Tigers look to climb up the Essendon District Football League division 1 ladder The Tigers had a very young list this year with a clear focus on continuing to bring through the under-19 players Second-year Tigers coach Grant Smith said they knew that 2018 would be a tough year with their depth coming from the under-19s players With the young core signed up for next season Smith said they had looked to add some experienced players Dean Clare and Bradley Sutcliffe not returning it was an area that Smith said they had to address The biggest name signing that has joined the Tigers is former Mariybrnong Park coach Robbie Castello Castello stood down from his role at Maribyrnong Park at the end of this season due to work commitments but we were hopeful of getting him,” Smith said “There was known complications of him playing premier football due to work but work will allow him to train and play division 1 football in Melbourne Smith said Castello would help the younger players with skills and tips learnt by playing at higher levels “I played a fair bit of premier football and there’s little things that you don’t know about if you haven’t played at that level “Robbie will be able to help with that sort of thing Set to join Castello at the Tigers is West Coburg quartet Ahmed Abdul-Wahed Omar Saad,Omar Abdallah and Marwan Abdul-Wahed Smith said the four were looking for a change of clubs and had approached the club about possibly coming on board Mitch Church returns to the club after 12 months at division 1 rival Hillside Smith said Church wanted to return to play with his mates “He’s a very different player coming back,” he said “He’s been helping with discussions about players and grabbed a group of kids at training and worked on specific things something he wasn’t keen on a couple of years ago.” Smith said they had finished approaching players to join the club but wouldn’t say no to anyone that wants to come down to the club www.starweekly.com.au/sports/hillside-changing-things-up/ www.starweekly.com.au/sports/settled-sunbury-kangaroos-begin-to-build-for-next-season/ Westmeadows will get a clear indication of where it sits in Essendon District Football League division 1 in the first four rounds of the season who were knocked out in the semi-finals last season have one of the toughest draws in the early part of the season They start with clashes against Oak Park (third last season) Tigers coach David Connell said they knew the first four rounds could define their season “We’re under no illusions about the start of the season – we’ll quickly know where we sit.” Connell said the players had showed good signs in the pre-season “The practice matches have been in really warm weather – we haven’t played in under 30 degrees,” he said “We played Wallan first up and played well in patches we were down by eight or nine goals at half-time but got up by three goals “In every practice match we’ve been missing between nine or 10 guys.” Connell took the opportunity to play seven under-19 during a club weekend away A total of 11 under-19s players were given opportunities during the preseason Connell said those younger players would continue to get their chances during the season we had one or two under-19 guys pushing up,” he said nine or even 10 guys who will get opportunities this season It’s really pleasing to see them come through we need the under-16s and under-18s coming through and playing senior football” were two of the under-19 players that would likely play a lot of senior football The Tigers’ off-season recruiting has focused on looking at midfield depth despite the club losing a couple of forwards Connell said that was the area they identified needed the most work “We’ve brought in nine players and six of them are midfielders,” he said “We have Mitchell Church coming back from injury He’s arguably the best forward in the competition “Robbie Mullens missed a few games – he can kick goals – while we’ve added Rikki Newton who has kicked 50 to 60 goals in the Western Region Football League.” Mo Kaakour will step into the senior coaching role at Westmeadows next year who after two seasons in charge of the Essendon District Football League division 1 club Kaakour who joined the Tigers coaching panel earlier this season said it was always the plan for him to take over from Smith “It is exciting and there’s exciting times ahead,” he said “It was always planned and this season was more of a transition role It has panned out the way we wanted it to.” Kaakour has played a massive role at the Tigers this season with Smith spending a lot of time interstate with work who is stepping back due to work commitments has been spending Sundays to Thursdays interstate leaving Kaakour to run a large part of the program “It was good for them to get used to my voice the game plan and the structure,” he said “Obviously coming from a long way back we needed a game plan and structure that you could use with the younger group “We finished bottom two last year… It’s been a good year so far.” Having been an assistant coach elsewhere and a premiership winning under-19 coach Kaakour brings plenty of experience to the role He said Smith and captain Robbie Castello had provided him with plenty of guidance in his first year back at the club having been an assistant coach under David Connell Kaakour said it was an exciting time for the club He said the goal was focused on moving into the premier division in the next couple of years “They are a good group,” he said “They’re young and talented and they want to learn.” Kaakour’s focus in the short term is helping Smith hopefully guide the side into a finals series this year with Hillside a chance to go even on points if they win this week with Kaakour saying it come at a good time after a disappointing 12.10 (82)-6.6 (42) loss to East Keilor on the weekend “We’re not that far off,” he said “We’ve got to regroup as we’re hit a wall on the weekend against East Keilor “Credit to them they played some good football We’ve got to get back on the horse and find form again.” Belal Abou-Eid (Sunshine) & Jayden Ranno (Airport West)  Braydon Hardstaff (Tullamarine) & Jake Sharman (Mernda) Mo Kaakour has a pretty stable list at his disposal entering what looks to be a promising year for the Tigers Westmeadows' deep forward line has been retained including last season's Division 1 goal kicking champ and new recruit Belal Abou-Eid will help fill the void down back left by retiring defender In the middle the Tigers will be well served by the arrival of experienced ruckman Ferras Merhi while reigning Hutchinson Medallist Robbie Castello proved to be the best player in the competition last season so expect Westmeadows to push for the finals - or maybe even a top two berth - in Season 2020 because Westmeadows’ inaugural EDFL Women’s team is set to make huge waves in the new-look competition this year The side started training before Christmas where they had nine to 10 girls show up at sessions With EDFL Women’s edging closer and closer there are now 25 Tigers out training on the track Deb William explains who the players to watch are “Danielle Linton is known for her basketball skills but has been performing well on the track,” William said very fit and will go great going through the centre.” There are also a couple of sister combinations suiting up for the Tigers in 2018 Kloe Jordan-Wilson hails from a basketball background and looks set to play alongside her sister But basketball is not the only sport that the players have come across from with William admitting that there are many cricketers in the side as well “Most of the girls played in the first Westmeadows side in the cricket,” she said “They made the grand final in their first cricket season as well “There's a core group of about 10 there that have all played cricket.” One thing Westmeadows is renowned for is its junior program and it is just as strong for the females of the suburb the club only had one Under 15 Youth Girls side but now it has multiple female sides running around in the EDFL open women's and single female teams,” William said “We made a decision with the Under 9s to keep it mixed so that's possibly easier for the families to try and get kids around to different venues.” But that is not all to be excited about at Willowbrook Reserve with the Hume Council approving the club’s request to have lights installed at the ground This means that the EDFL Women’s side could make a few appearances under lights towards the latter part of the season The Westmeadows EDFL Women’s side will be coached by Matthew Walker in 2018 “He's played all his juniors with us and he's very involved in the cricket club,” she said “(Walker has) always been involved in the footy club and hasn't played himself for the last couple of seasons but he's a local lad and he's got a really great rapport and relationship with the girls.” If you would like to play at Willowbrook Reserve this season Westmeadows has a fight on its hands if it’s to secure a first-innings points against St Andrews in Victorian Turf Cricket Association north-west A1 The Warriors need just 14 runs on day two to grab first-innings points but they have just two wickets in hand after the bowlers had a day out on day one The Warriors bowlers did a good job for a second straight week The Warriors themselves then had struggles with the bat and were 8-112 at stumps Warriors captain-coach Tarek Moughanie said he was confident they could get the job done “We did really well with the ball but we couldn’t get a couple of partnerships going with the bat,” he said “Two of the younger boys are in – Aaron [Evans] is a handy batsman and they can hopefully guide us “Regardless of who gets first innings points We will have to fight hard to secure the win.” Moughanie said getting early wins was important as the players were taking a bit of time to gel together after a raft of changes to the team Moughanie has joined the club along with his former Greenvale Kangaroos teammate Three of the club’s younger players have stepped back up to the top side after playing in the second XI last season after all three returned to the club from Premier Cricket Cameron Clayton and Ryan Blair – all played in the senior side a couple of years ago Tarique Jeffrey and Praneeth Jayasundera have all left Moughanie believes there will be a lot of improvement in the side “We’ve had three players go out and five players come “I think we have one of the strongest more balanced sides the club has had the last few years Our top eight could bat anywhere – that’s one of the challenges we have  We are still establishing our best batting line up.” The Warriors women’s side made its debut in the VTCA senior women’s competition at the weekend against Sydenham-Hillside and St Francis de Sales At Valley Park, in Westmeadows there’s literally nothing to do but move in and start enjoying the neighbourhood in Melbourne’s northwest has been specially tailored to meet the needs of time-poor buyers by providing architecturally designed homes that have been purpose-built for the estate Homes are sold off the plan and include three- to five-bedroom designs with light-filled open living spaces and low-maintenance gardens Homes have been purpose-built for the estate Frasers Property Australia general manager Sarah Bloom said the turnkey housing solution offered a stress-free way to buy property The estate’s final stage was released mid-2019 and features a mix of detached houses and townhouses which includes fittings and fixtures such as heating letterbox and even a landscaped front garden with drought-tolerant plants “Residents can also plug straight into a super-fast optic-fibre connection,” Ms Bloom said The development has strongly appealed to young families and those looking to upgrade “A real sense of community is often what we hear our residents love most about living at Valley Park,” Ms Bloom said “It almost feels like you are a world away from the hustle and bustle of the CBD yet it’s only half an hour from the CBD and set high on the hill overlooking Yuroke Creek.” A healthy lifestyle is supported by walking and cycling paths that link the estate with the Moonee Ponds Creek Trail and nearby Broadmeadows There’s also a green fitness trail with interspersed fitness stations meandering through the development Walking and cycling paths provide links to the wider community There will be three parks for residents to enjoy including the popular Linear Park that has a uniquely designed staircase featuring colourful tiles created by local schoolchildren Each step is numbered so residents can incorporate the staircase into their workout routines “The tiles add a real community connection to the staircase which is a central and striking visual feature it’s used as a workout space and meeting point,” Ms Bloom said “The key sustainability feature of Valley Park is our emphasis on walkability and providing ample green space to encourage residents to get outdoors and active which in turn improves overall health and wellbeing,” Ms Bloom said dining options and no fewer than 10 schools Western Ring Rd and Broadmeadows train station from which trains will reach the city in about 30 minutes The nearest school is Broadmeadows Valley primary diverse community and environmental benefits were what convinced first-home buyers Nikita Martins and her husband Ms Martins said views of the surrounding green corridor were another big drawcard “I love where we live because of the combination of the stunning natural beauty and the well-designed house which features multiple viewpoints of the valley,” she said Homebuyers Nikita Martins and husband Rahul Paul The home’s sustainable design provided the couple with some peace of mind they were helping the environment by reducing their carbon footprint as well as contributing to lower gas and electricity bills Being just 17km from the city has made Ms Martins’ daily commute to work a lot simpler “Our home is so close to the train station I am able to save on time and parking by taking the train,” she said the couple has found the community’s diverse culture has created a strong sense of belonging “I love the sense of unity and community living,” Ms Martins said “We often ride our bikes through the valley or play basketball here.” CNN and the BBC World Service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced AEST = Australian Eastern Standard Time which is 10 hours ahead of GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) Westmeadows has landed an experienced captain-coach and gun all-rounder as the club looks to remain a contender in the Victorian Turf Cricket Association’s north-west A1 competition The Warriors announced on Monday night that Tarek Moughanie had been appointed captain-coach for the next two seasons Moughanie comes to the club having spent the last six seasons with Greenvale Kangaroos’ Victorian Turf Cricket Association senior side He was captain-coach of the Kangaroos for four seasons before stepping back from the role the last two seasons Joining Moughanie at the Warriors is his Kangaroos’ team mate Chinthaka Jayasinghe Moughanie said the timing was right for him to move to the Warriors having previously spoken to the club about playing for them “I’m really looking forward to it,” he said “I spoke to Westmeadows before I spoke to Greenvale six years ago There was a coaching position at Greenvale and I thought it was the right decision “I have a good relationship with Westmeadows and after having two years off coaching I was ready to get involved again “I’m really good friends with Danny Law and he insisted I speak to the club Moughanie said one of the things that really attracted him to the Warriors was the youth coming through He highlighted Aaron Evans and Clayton Campbell who both spent a season with Greenvale Premier Cricket as players who could easily take the first step “While they have some really good senior players they also have some really good quality youth “I want to build as many contributors as possible Hopefully we can build a consistent side.” Moughanie said he was thrilled to be able to play with Jayasinghe again Jayasinghe scored two 70s in the Kangaroos senior division grand final loss to Yarraville Club “I heard he was talking to another club and said if you were looking to play elsewhere I’d love to speak to you about playing at Westmeadows “He was happy to continue playing with me.” Warriors’ president Jeff Hubbard said Jayasinghe is the perfect replacement for Praneeth Jayasundera “We’re disappointed PJ isn’t coming back so we were looking for someone of his ability CJ was happy to come and we think he’ll flourish at this level former skipper Chanaka Welegedara and Tarique Jeffrey are heading elsewhere He said they were hopeful of retaining Sathpath Kamburugamuwa but that would be dependent on visa approval Hubbard said having added Moughanie and Jayasinghe they would unlikely add anyone else unless they lost Kamburugamuwa He said they would like to promote some of their younger players “Tarek coached the VTCA under-21 team and is really good with younger players,” Hubbard said “Our seconds have won three grand finals in the last five years We have to test the depth and Tarek plans to do that.” A bad 15 minutes in the second quarter ultimately cost Westmeadows in its clash with Hillside on Saturday with the home side falling to a 29-point loss While the two teams sit at opposite ends of the Essendon District Football League division one ladder Westmeadows was able to take first use of a strong breeze to take an early lead in the contest The nine-point buffer at quarter-time may have been greater had the home side kicked a little straighter with just two majors coming from eight scoring shots but at the other end it was able to contain the powerful Sharks forwards to just one goal the tide turned viciously in the second quarter with Hillside making full use of the wind to slam on ten goals to blow the game wide open With one of its youngest sides for the year on the park Westmeadows had no answers to the onslaught “We went away from everything that we wanted to do for ten minutes in that second quarter and that ultimately cost us,” Connell said “It probably made the game look worse than it was because I thought we played quite well for most of it “We had five guys out from the week before so we knew we were going to be up against it with an inexperienced side and that lack of senior blokes cost us with some inconsistencies.” The final scoreline of 16.17 (113)-7.14 (56) showed the gap between the two sides but Westmeadows was able to prevent a final quarter blowout matching the Sharks on the scoreboard despite kicking into the wind While the lack of senior players on the park hurt Westmeadows on the day Connell said he was impressed with some of his under 19s “Corey Field played his first game and played 100 per cent game time down back so he did a great job for us,” Connell said “Young Josh Hale had probably his third game for the seniors in three or four years and probably played his best game and Jordan Hollow from the under 19s was our best goalkicker with three so there were some encouraging signs out there.” Greenvale held onto top spot on the premier division ladder with a convincing 41-point win over Maribyrnong Park The Jets kept the Lions to just 29 points for the game as they strode to a 9.16 (70)-3.11 (29) win Craigieburn remain winless this season following an 85-point loss to Aberfeldie Westmeadows used its bye to reset and get its season back on track Tigers coach Dave Connell was less than impressed with how the side was going in Essendon District Football League division 1 “It had been really disappointing,” he said “Even with our win we weren’t happy with how we played  We played one quarter against Tullamarine and one quarter against Glenroy and arguably only two quarters in our win against Oak Park and on Tuesday we got together as a senior group and it was a line in the sand moment “It was the most solid training session I’ve seen in my four years at the club.” knocking off a previously unbeaten Hillside side The Tigers trailed by 19 points at quarter- time but Connell thought that if it hadn’t been for giving away free kicks and 50 metre penalties they would have been a lot closer on the scoreboard kicking nine goals to two for the quarter to take a 23-point lead into half-time The Tigers continued on their way in the second half Most pleasing for Connell was the all-round performance from their older players to 15-year-old Ryan Mullen on debut a Tigers’ best and fairest winner and still playing “He’ll be a really good player in the future,” Connell said of Ryan The win leaves the Tigers with a record of two wins and two losses Connell said before the season that he would have a better indication of where the Tigers sat after the first four rounds having three games away in that period against sides which will be looking to play finals,” he said “Had we gone 1-3 after the first month after not playing good football I would have been reassessing where I thought we were “If we can play our best football I think we’ll be hard to beat.” with no EDFL games due to interleague matches The Demons held the Hawks goal less for the first three  quarters in the 18.27 (135)-2.1 (13) win Greenvale made it four wins in a row with a hard-fought victory against Pascoe Vale while it was another tough day for Craigieburn Westmeadows’ season remains alive after a strong performance against Strathmore in their Essendon District Football League Women’s elimination final With both club’s fielding sides for the first time this season finals football was a new experience for both teams The Tigers started the better and then went to another level in the second half Tigers coach Matty Walker said they were stoked with the win “They’ve exceeded all my expectations,” he said “We had six players before Christmas and we weren’t sure we were going to have a team “We re-assessed during the year … we thought it we could win a final The Tigers entered the final against Strathmore as favourites but knew that finals are a often a different kind of football but could have been further ahead had they kicked straight Walker said at half-time there was one simple message for the players “We knew that if we could kick the first two or three goals of the quarter we could break the game open and we did that,” he said “We then got the first couple of the last and got up by six or seven goals and put the cue in the rack.” Tylah Evans and Nat Egan also scored goals Walker said Scott was best on ground and led from the front they face Aberfeldie in a knock-out semi-final Aberfeldie lost its qualifying final to Pascoe Vale “We think we can beat Aberfeldie,” Walker said “We only lost to them by a goal in a tight tussle last time “We’re hoping to get into a preliminary final and we think we will be a good show.” Sunbury Lions won the other elimination final who lost their qualifying final to Burnside Heights 6.7 (43)-5.9 (39) The Bears and Pascoe Vale both get the week off and are through to preliminary finals Westmeadows’ gun cricketer Danielle Linton is prepared to give anything a go When she was asked to play cricket last season despite not having played since in the backyard as a kid including taking out the Victoria Turf Cricket Association women’s best and fairest This time she’s taken on the extra role of co-coach with Matty Walker it was a challenge she was willing to take on “Having more responsibility means a few more nerves “When Sonja Viehl got appointed at Greenvale in a bigger role our president Jeff [Hubbard] had a conversation with me to see if I was interested or not in coaching so I said I would need to have some guidance He also coached the Westmeadows women’s football side which featured several cricketers including Linton Linton said they were trying to convince some of the football girls to switch sports for the summer “Myself and sister [Nat Linton] and a couple of others have been in their ears trying to get them to come and join us,” she said “If they’re not playing they will come and support us.” Linton said they were looking at fielding two teams this season The top team will play in the VTCA competition while the second side will play in the new North West Metropolitan Cricket Association competition Linton said they were looking for players for both sides and hoped to get enough so players didn’t have to double up “We’ve definitely got numbers for at least one team we’re looking for any one who wants to have a game.” Having made the grand final in the first side and personally had a great season Linton said last season would be hard to top “We started last season just hoping to win a match Half way through we thought we were a chance to make the grand final and that was absolutely amazing.” The Warriors are also hoping to have an under-13 girls team Westmeadows was a side in a hurry over the past two weekends in Victorian Turf Cricket Association north-west A1 Looking to entrench their position in the upper echelons of the ladder the Warriors have grabbed two big results to move to the top Warriors coach Tarek Moughanie said it was a huge weekend for the club “We wanted to have a good win against Footscray United and then win the second game and consolidate a top-two spot,” he said He said the club wouldn’t read too much into the second game but would benefit greatly from the extra points “We got 17 points yesterday and 10 and a half today,” he said the Warriors claimed an outright win against Footscray United The Warriors set the match up on day one on the back of 152 not out from Moughanie and a solid 69 from Chinthaka Jayasinghe The bowlers backed them up to have United 8-77 at stumps Dominic Bulcock took three wickets for the Warriors United came close to making the Warriors bat again Moughanie said United got more runs than might have been expected through Westmeadows sticking with attacking fields knocking off the previously unbeaten St Francis de Sales St Francis was dismissed for 87 on the back of good bowling and strong fielding that included three run-outs Sathpath Kamburugamuwa was the stand-out with the ball while Moughanie said two of the younger players Aaron Evans and Clayton Campbell were both starting to hit their straps The Warriors hit the winning runs in just 13 overs with Moughanie and Jayasinghe both getting 50s Moughanie said while the club got both wins quite quickly it did so through playing its normal game style “We’ve just trying to play positive cricket,” he said “We’ve got a lot of good cricketers with natural flare who are playing their natural game.” The wins move the Warriors about 10 points clear on top of the ladder with two rounds remaining Moughanie said making sure they finish in the top two was vital to ensuring a home final On Tuesday night the Warriors will play in the North West Metropolitan Cricket Association T20 grand final