Twenty-five years after being accepted into the competition, Colac has its first Geelong Football Netball League life members.
Current president Matt Gibson, long-serving netball chair Andrea Graham, and experienced treasurer Tyson Hay were honoured at Wednesday night’s annual general meeting.
Also receiving a GFNL life membership was Lara netball chair Di van Doren.
Graham and van Doren are only the second and third female life members appointed in the competition’s 47-year history, and the first two for their contribution to netball.
In the Bellarine league, former Modewarre chair Paul Grossman, Portarlington stalwart Rod Smith, and Geelong Amateur treasurer Neville Hunter were approved for life membership.
The life memberships will be presented at the AFL Barwon AGM on February 25.
In other news from the respective meetings, Former Drysdale star and vice-president Peter Preece and Damian Clark from Barwon Heads have joined the Bellarine board on two-year terms, with current members Mike Walmsley, Damian Mahoney and chair Michael Fitzgerald extending their tenure for another year.
The GFNL board has added two former club presidents – Todd Devine from St Joseph’s and Colac’s Nick Lang.
Peter Kelly remains as president but will step down when the AFL Barwon restructuring takes place, and a new board is appointed to replace the current commission.
It is expected that one of Devine or Lang will become GFNL president and take a seat on that board.
Both the Bellarine and Geelong leagues have affiliated with AFL Barwon, which will carry over to the new local governing body.
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