Mr MATT KEAN (Hornsby—Minister for Innovation and Better Regulation) (22:48): I acknowledge a milestone for one of Hornsby's great sporting organisations, the Asquith Soccer Club. For 50 years this club has been an institution in Hornsby. Run by dedicated volunteers, it has grown into a mighty force and a tough competitor in the local competition. Priding themselves on being the "friendly club", the members have helped to foster a love of soccer amongst the entire Asquith community. In fact, many families have dad or mum in the senior divisions and kids in the junior teams, making it truly a family club.
The club is run by a group of hardworking local volunteers who fill the roles of managers, coaches and committee members. These volunteers are the lifeblood of the club. Countless volunteers have gone through the Asquith Soccer Club over the past 50 years—too many to mention today. I thank them all for helping to make it the club it is today. Their dedication to their local club is nothing short of amazing. I am not surprised the kids keep coming back to play for the mighty white and blues year in and year out.
Their hard work does not stop with the club. They get involved in many community events, such as Carols at Asquith Oval, which raises money for the Hornsby Ku-ring-gai Women's Shelter. I thank the life members of the Asquith Soccer Club: Sam Castelnuovo, Alan Davis, Neil Harris, Derek Harwin, Tony Stephens, Gary Tyerman, Chris Hemming, Stephen Hemming, Jeffrey Meyers, Jason Brown, Richard Pilgrim, Michael Pursche and Michael Leuenberger. A life membership is never given lightly by a club, and some of these volunteers have given more than 40 years to the mighty white and blues. I thank them for their dedication to our local community.
The current committee is led by club president John Humphreys, with Daryl O'Brien assisting as secretary. Evan Byrnes, Grant Harlow, Adrian Scott, Julie Creasey, Mark Williams, David Haron, Keiron Rice, David Bury, Evan Byrnes, Matt Westrip, Robert Lee, Ryan Farrow and Pia Scott all assist in the day-to-day running of the club. Without these amazing volunteers and all the volunteers who came before them, Asquith Soccer Club would not be the club it is today.
The Asquith Soccer Club first entered a team in 1969 in the division 2 competition. The team won the championships that first year and throughout the 1970s the Asquith strip dominated the division 1 competition. The all-age team also regularly made it into the top four. In 1979, the first-grade team was the runner-up and took out the one and only KDSA Cup for the club. The reserve grade side was also the premier team that year, making it an extremely successful year for the club. The next 10 years saw a dip in the club's success. While the top team could not break the drought, the reserve grade side was able to win three straight titles from 1982 to 1984. This decline continued until 1992, by which time the division 1 team had slipped down to division 4.
However, the community was behind the club and the volunteers, players and supporters were determined to see it succeed again. Over the next 10 years they continued to pour their heart and soul into the club. By 2001 it was back in division 2 and won the title, which saw it promoted to the Premier League. The club was then a strong competitor again. It went on to win the Premier League title for five years in a row. This set the record for the most consecutive Premier League titles won by any club. In 2004 Asquith Soccer Club was the runner-up in the NSW Champion of Champions Tournament, and the Premier League Reserve Grade side also won that year. With this great success, the club has grown stronger and by 2009 had men's teams in first grade and reserve grade in the Premier League, and in division 3, division 4, division 5, division 6 and the over-35s. This was also another year in which the Premier League side took the trophy honours.
Asquith Soccer Club is not only about the men's sides. In 2009 the club had all-age division 1, division 4, and over-35 sides in the women's leagues. More recently, it has moved away from the Premier League squads and instead focused on the grassroots development of up-and-coming players and significant growth in girls' and women's football. The club now has three women's teams ensuring that up-and-coming junior girls have senior teams into which they can progress. In 2014 the division 4 team took out minor and major premierships and earned promotion to division 3. The men's over-35 team was the runner-up and the women's over-35 team won the division 2 competition. The junior teams had five out of seven competitive aged teams reaching the finals series.
This season, 2018, the Asquith Soccer Club achieved another milestone: more than 500 active registered players across 34 teams. It has almost doubled player participation in seven years and it has more teams than ever across juniors, youth, girls, women's, all age, 35s and now men's over-45s. The players, parents and local community, including small business sponsors, identify with the values and spirit of the club. Their support at Asquith Oval for their teams and the club as a whole is nothing short of phenomenal. One often finds home games attended by families having picnics on the sidelines.
Asquith Soccer Club recently won the Hyundai Goals for Grassroots, which saw the junior teams take the field with the Sydney Football Club players during the A-League final. The club is also the deserving recipient of a local sports grant, which has provided much-needed funding support to purchase playing strips, footballs and equipment such as a defibrillator for Asquith Oval. This club is a shining example of the character of the people of my electorate, which I am proud and privileged to represent. I extend congratulations to Asquith Soccer Club on reaching this impressive milestone. May there be 50 more successful years of football ahead.
