D-Day for the Tamar Cats Football Club’s survival has been extended by the Northern Tasmanian Football Association until Sunday.
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The Beauty Point-based NTFA division 2 club held a crisis meeting on Tuesday evening to try and tackle the low player numbers at training, which threatens its viability.
NTFA president Paul Reynolds said the Cats, who finished seventh last season, must provided a list of 50 players committed to play with the club this season, plus assurances of financial and governance viability to be guaranteed a licence for 2018.
Reynolds was honest in his appraisal and said the Cats were “very much in crisis mode”.
“We will need a commitment from them that they will be competitive, I’m sure the governance and financial situation is OK, but again it comes down to personnel,” he said.
Cats president Chris Rundle said the submission would be sent off following a practice match on Sunday and was confident his club would continue on after a heated clubroom-meeting with 25 stakeholders present.
He said 16 players trained this week with a further 12 unable to due to injury or work, while an appointment of a reserves coach was imminent.
“We’ve had 35 to 40 different people train and at our committee meeting we’ve decided that every player that plays seniors this year will get paid,” Rundle said.
“A minimum payment will be $30 for a first year player and that will increase for every year they have played with us.
“We have upset our seconds players in the past and now we have to ensure we look after them as well.”
Rundle said the NTFA was extremely concerned but he is determined to keep the Beaconsfield region's only football club alive.
“They have told us that if we can’t produce 50 players they will kick us out of the league and we’ve been honest with them,” he said.
“We will provide them with a list.”
Tamar Cats was formed by the amalgamation of Beauty Point and Beaconsfield in 1989 and appointed Old Scotch premiership player Michael Murfet senior coach at the end of last season.
Rundle said only four players from 2017 had requested transfers and that the club had recruited about 10 senior players during the off-season.
The 11-team NTFA division 2 roster starts on Saturday, March 24, with the Cats scheduled to host Old Launcestonians in their opening match.
Corey Martin
Having started at The Examiner as a cadet in 2009, I have held various positions telling the stories of Northern Tasmanians in sport and news. I was appointed deputy editor in 2019 and became editor in September 2021.
Having started at The Examiner as a cadet in 2009, I have held various positions telling the stories of Northern Tasmanians in sport and news. I was appointed deputy editor in 2019 and became editor in September 2021.
