Luke Brown, Former Castlemaine resident
The joyous occasion that was the MAIN Game 2026 was the first game of footy I’d played on the Camp Reserve since 1994.
I was staggered to find the facilities almost completely unchanged. I say ‘almost’ only because the facilities have of course degraded over those 32 years.
The facilities of a major town’s main sports ground should not mirror the condition of an old footballer’s knees. Why shouldn’t Castlemaine’s community sport participants have the modern facilities that exist in most other major towns and suburbs?
I’ve played on or watched junior and community sport on something like 100 main sports grounds in Australia and other countries. In terms of facilities, the Camp ranks near the bottom.
My old home town has had a very appealing array of cultural strands. Even if it’s not your thing, it shouldn’t be difficult to understand that community sport is a central plank of any vibrant Australian community. Castlemaine’s golden heritage and wealth gave the town the magnificent public buildings and streetscapes that are central to its appeal. It is perverse that this heritage is being leveraged to keep Castlemaine’s main community sports ground in a substandard condition.