A letter from our President
To all in our Box Hill Hawks family,
I hope you are all keeping well!
We wanted to provide a quick update as we hopefully work towards a 2020 season resumption.
The club has been working closely with both the AFL and the other VFL clubs as we work our way through the various obstacles to a season’s resumption. The number of issues outstanding continue to narrow and we remain optimistic that we might hear some good news in the next week.
From our club’s viewpoint, we place no caveats on our participation this season. We are all in!
Like most sporting clubs, we have sustained a significant negative financial impact as a result of COVID-19. However, due to the great governance of the club over a long period we are in the fortunate position of being able to withstand the fallout of the pandemic.
The Board has spent a considerable amount of time reviewing the financial impact of playing an abridged 2020 season. Our primary focus was to ensure no further degradation to our balance sheet, a difficult challenge given the uncertainty around crowd participation. It was decided that, in an effort to minimise further losses, we would approach our players, coaches and football staff to determine their willingness to fulfill their roles while receiving no payment for the balance of the year.
In a sign of the great culture of the club all concerned agreed to the request, laying the foundations in our way forward. As a club, we should be both proud and grateful of this outcome.
So, hopefully we will get some good news in the next week. The team has returned to training with a highly unusual season in the offing. However, under the wonderful leadership of Max and Dan, the focus has switched to the opportunity rather than the challenge. The reality is that all listed players will represent the club should the season get going. A unique situation in a unique year!
Finally, we wouldn’t be in the position of being ‘all in’ if it wasn’t for the support of all the club’s partners. Hawthorn have continued to provide help and guidance at all levels, Whitehorse Council have been relentless in their support, our sponsors have remained both engaged and committed and we have already spoken about the contribution from our players, coaches and staff alike.
The club is in great shape, both on and off-field and we look forward with relish to what the future brings!
Thanks for your support and of course, Go Hawks!
Ed Sill
President
Box Hill Hawks Football Club
