July 17, 2020
Junior footy is back Bell Park Dragons’ under-10 and under-12 girls are getting super excited for their inaugural game this weekend. The club is ielding the combined girls’ football team for the irst time during this year’s coronavirus-delayed season. “They’re absolutely raring to go!” club junior committee member Samantha Hair said. “They’ve been waiting since they started pre-season training in March before everything went on hold.” AFL Barwon is set to commence junior games tomorrow despite an Inverleigh under-13 player and two of their household members testing positive recently. The organisation cleared all other teams to play with Inverleigh’s under-13 side scheduled for a bye. Ms Hair and fellow committee members have spent the week going through COVID-19 protocols to ensure “everyone knows the game plan for Saturday”. “It’s get in, play and get out,” she said. “[Many] things that the kids are used to won’t be happening, but they’re following rules.” Luke Voogt
Neve, 9, Ava, 8, Ava, 10, Eadie, 7 and Chloe, 10. (Louisa Jones) 211188_53
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player tests positive: Page 3.
$280m tourism black hole By Luke Voogt At least $280 million in tourism revenue has been lost in Geelong and the Bellarine Peninsula since the COVID-19 pandemic hit Victoria. In just four months, more than a quarter of the region’s annual $1.1 billion tourism dollars has been wiped out, according to Tourism Greater Geelong and the Bellarine executive director Brett Ince. “If you imagine what the Melbourne lockdown is doing to the economy in the region now, it would be [even] higher,” he said. Recent data shows Geelong accommodation and food services have lost a combined $127
million for the June quarter alone. About 60 per cent of the sector’s employees have either lost work or are reliant on JobKeepeer. According to the data, the pandemic has cost an estimated 2190 of 7500 full-time equivalent jobs in the sector locally, with 2300 people losing their jobs. he region was “deinitely” set to lose more than half its tourism revenue this year based on estimated forward igures for a range of scenarios, Mr Ince said. Of Geelong’s average 6.4 million visitors each year, 4.4 million were domestic day-trippers, 1.6 million were overnight domestic visitors
and 400,000 were international visitors, he explained. Of the overnight domestic visitors, who stay 2.5 nights on average and contribute signiicantly to overall revenue, 53 per cent were from Melbourne, which is now in lockdown. Another 17 per cent were from interstate, meaning only the remaining 30 per cent from regional Victoria could still visit Geelong, he said. “When you add those igures, that’s why you’re seeing that downturn,” Mr Ince said. “We hope as we move to recovery in the future that Melburnians consider a short break in the Geelong and the Bellarine to recharge – when the time is right.” Local municipal alliance G21 last week
described the looming cessation of the JobKeeper allowance in September, combined with current circumstances, as the “perfect storm” for Geelong’s visitor economy. Mr Ince said he “wholeheartedly” hoped for federal government wage relief to continue for the tourism sector, regional Victoria and Melbourne. “We understand that the federal government will provide an update on wage relief and other support measures late next week.” He also welcomed state government measures, such as its $40 million Regional Tourism Support Program, to support businesses impacted by cancellations.
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