THE Cats are coming back.
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Geelong footballers will again head to traditional heartland in south-west Victoria as part of their annual AFL community camp next year.
The AFL yesterday unveiled the destinations the 18 clubs will head to as part of the camps, staged across Australia in February and March.
The Cats will spend time on the Bellarine Peninsula and Surf Coast, as well as at Derrinallum, Lismore and Skipton on February 23 and 24.
AFL Victoria’s Western District football development manager Alan Thompson welcomed the Cats’ decision to return to the region.
“We met them the other day. It’s been decided we’ll head to Derrinallum. We’ll be looking after the Derrinallum, Lismore, Skipton area,” he said.
“We’ve had preliminary discussions with the schools about running a clinic, maybe a civic reception and maybe a hospital visit. We haven’t finalised those things.”
The AFL media release stated the club was bound for Mortlake. But Thompson said the town already benefited from visits from Cats players each year.
“They’ve got a wonderful oval up there, the Derrinallum footy ground. It’s a wonderful chance to showcase that to the local community,” he said.
AFL people, customer and community manager Dorothy Hisgrove said the camps gave clubs an opportunity to acknowledge their fans.
“The Australia Post AFL community camps are a significant event in the AFL pre-season calendar as they provide fans across Australia with an opportunity to meet and engage with their favourite players and clubs,” she said.
“Fans are the most important people in our game and these camps are a terrific chance for AFL players to acknowledge their loyalty and support first-hand.”
The south-west has been a regular host of AFL community camps in recent years.
Richmond visited Warrnambool and Framlingham as part of its annual trip this year, while Geelong ventured to Port Fairy in 2011 and Portland in 2012.