PHOTO: Newcastle Permanent Staff, Cherisse Lynn, Member Services Officer and Andrew Virtue, Branch Lending Manager with some of the Newcastle Permanent soccer balls that will be distributed across Northern NSW to all entry level players.
Over 9,000 footballs provided by Northern NSW Football’s Official Partner in Community Football, Newcastle Permanent Building Society are rolling out across the region in preparation for the start of the 2016 football season.
The free balls are provided annually by Newcastle Permanent in association with Northern NSW Football to entry-level players aged 7 and under to help kick-start their season.
Since registrations for the 2016 season opened on 1 February, more than 31,000 players have registered across Northern NSW.
Strong growth in player numbers last season left rival codes on the sidelines. Across its seven (7) Member Zones in Northern NSW, player numbers increased for both males and females in almost all age divisions from juniors through to seniors for Season 2015.
Since 2012 in Northern NSW there has been over 10% growth in registered players in the traditional winter season.
Add to this, ‘summer football’ figures, which includes Summer 6s and other special tournaments played across the off season and total registered players for 2015 amounted to 60,420 up 18.15% on 2012’s total.
Local Member Zones in Newcastle, Hunter and Lake Macquarie recorded an average growth of 4.37% on 2014’s figures, with NNSWF’s four regional Member Zones in the State’s North recording an average increase of 6.49%.
Strongest segment growth occurred in Juniors (8-11 years) with a total increase across Northern NSW of 9.6%, with an average of 9% in both the Newcastle/Hunter Region as well as the Northern Member Zones.
Strongest growth of all Member Zones in Northern NSW came from the North Coast (Coffs Harbour and surrounds) with a total growth of 9.19%, buoyed by a 16.45% growth in Youth (12-18 years) registrations alone.
The State wide figures are encouraging, as they reflect strong growth in the game not only in metropolitan centres, but in regional areas as well.
| Winter Participation | ||||
| NNSWF Member Zone | 2014 Registrations | 2015 Registrations | % Increase | Participation Highlights* |
| Northern Inland Football | 5,434 | 5,513 | + 1.82% | Juniors + 5% |
| Football Mid North Coast | 5,584 | 6,006 | + 7.56% | Entry + 10.2%, Juniors + 10.6%, Seniors + 9.7% |
| North Coast Football | 4,691 | 5,122 | + 9.19% | Juniors + 11%, Youth + 16.45%, Seniors + 7% |
| Football Far North Coast | 6,462 | 6,940 | + 7.4% | Youth + 8.8%, Juniors + 9.62% |
| Newcastle Football | 10,047 | 10,404 | + 3.55% | Juniors + 5.95% |
| Macquarie Football | 7,032 | 7,347 | + 4.48% | Entry + 5.67%, Juniors + 9.68% |
| Hunter Valley Football | 5,539 | 5,821 | + 5.09% | Juniors + 11.3%, Seniors + 7.8% |
*Entry 5-7 years: Juniors 8-11 years: Youth 12-18 years: Senior 18 +
About NNSWF’s Community Partnership with Newcastle Permanent:
Newcastle Permanent is the major partner of Community Football across Northern NSW and has partnered with NNSWF since 2008, supporting the High Performance Program and Junior Football Program.
Newcastle Permanent’s investment in football is one of its most important community partnerships and reflects the financial institution’s commitment to supporting the local community.
Integral to the Newcastle Permanent Community Football partnership is recognition of volunteers, coaches and others on the ground who play a vital role in delivering the game across Northern NSW.
The Community Partnership with Newcastle Permanent includes recognition programs such as Newcastle Permanent Volunteer of the Month, Newcastle Permanent Community Coach of the Month, Newcastle Permanent Community Club of the Year, training tools for community coaches and volunteers, as well as the distribution of over 9,000 free balls to young players.
