In the midst of the club’s revitalisation, South Cardiff Football Club volunteers were horrified to discover its home base, Ulinga Oval, had been vandalised the weekend before last.
No surface was left untouched by graffiti, with the perpetrators tagging everything from the canteen to the bleachers.
Vice-president and local business owner, Max McCorkell, described it as the “worst vandalism ever experienced at the club”.
“It was totally trashed,” he said.
Club officials notified Lake Macquarie council of the incident, however, they were reportedly told the council would not assist in the clean-up as the vandals did not use any profanities.
So, in the early hours of the Sunday morning after the attack, club volunteers rolled up their sleeves to remove the graffiti before games kicked off for the day.
“They say if you get to it within 72 hours, the vandals are less likely to return,” Mr McCorkell said.
“For half an hour of stupidity, it took hours to clean up. This is a cost born by the whole community; removal then repainting will be an extensive cost, because of a bunch of thoughtless people… who do not respect the hard work involved in managing the sports facility.”
The attack came as the club planned its repair of one of the fields and the construction of a retaining wall with a $35,000 state government grant, among other renewal projects.
Club officials reported the incident to police and provided them with photos in the hopes a match can be found in the police database.
Mr McCorkell added local residents saw and heard nothing, making it even harder to catch the culprits.
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