Federation Basketball League is the brainchild of 24-year-old Harry Overend who says the idea came from “boredom”.
“I go out and shoot hoops in south Corowa and there are always people out there playing. I thought we may as well get something structured happening,” he said.
The chef by trade was living in Melbourne and returned to Corowa after losing work during the first wave of COVID-19.
“I grew up playing footy here in Corowa and quit at 18. I was studying down in Melbourne and started playing basketball as part of a social league,” he said.
After putting a call out on social media to gauge interest, Harry was amazed by the response from the Corowa community.
“After three days, over 120 people liked our Facebook page. One of my posts reached 4000 people in town,” Harry said.
“I was expecting after one week to maybe have four teams. We now have nine senior teams and three junior (under 16) teams.
“The number of parents who have messaged me has been insane. There is no basketball in Corowa so if you want your kids to play you have to go to Albury, Wangaratta or Yarrawonga.”
Basketball is one of the few sports that is allowed to go ahead under COVID-19 restrictions with fewer than 20 people allowed in a public space.
Under the restrictions, the new league will be planned differently to allow social distancing and meet number requirements.
“There will be no spectators for a while. We will also only have six a side teams with the five officials running the game,” Harry said.
“The game will run for 40 minutes with four quarters instead of two to allow teams to be more separated.”
The first games of the league are anticipated to go ahead this week for senior teams despite not having a set venue.
“There is no public court in Corowa unfortunately, so we are looking at the high school to help us out. Hopefully we can access something more permanent in the future,” Harry said.
“We are looking at applying for a grant under the council community grants program as well. We would like a swish court built as they are much safer than concrete.
“Howlong has half the population and they have a full court so hopefully we can get the same.”
All first games will be free of charge, with future matches incurring a small fee to reimburse referees and organisers. Junior games will be postponed for a few weeks to allow organisers to more time coordinate teams.
Harry thanked the community for the overwhelming support.
“The interest in this league has been absolutely amazing! We cannot thank the local community enough for their ongoing support.”
To register your interest in a team email Harry Overend at federationbl@outlook.com