Dear Members,
We thank you for your patience while we have been discussing and reviewing information provided, by government and media surrounding the outbreak of COVID-19 in Australia. We have spent the weekend liaising with club presidents, each other and life members to get an understanding on where each club sits, in relation to the winter 2020 season commencing on Monday 23rd March.
We need to understand and respect that each person is going to have their own view on what should and shouldn’t happen. We encourage everyone to show empathy and patience to their fellow members, don’t attack each other’s views.
As an executive we have had to make a decision based on the wishes of our members and one that aligns with other social sporting organisation’s. That decision is to postpone the start of the 2020 Winter DDPL season. All scheduled games for this Monday March 23rd will not go ahead. We are aiming to re-commence fixtures, hopefully in late April.
Please note that this decision has been made with the very best of intentions, with the health and wellbeing of our members and their families in mind. We want to do our part in helping to reduce the spread and impact of COVID-19. As a competition and society we are in uncharted waters, the landscape of society is changing daily as more cases and deaths are confirmed. The demographic for our pool community is vast, we have male and female members ranging from 18 – 80+ years of age. Older members 60+ and those will existing health issues are our most vulnerable and we need to remember that. 8ball pool is our passion and our favourite pass-time, but health and survival trumps all. Lets do anything and everything in our power to ensure that we protect ourselves and others.
For those people who intend to continue to play pool during this period socially (if venues remain open). Ensure you practice good hygiene. Wash your hands with warm water and soap, use hand sanitizer, clean the balls continually after each frame. Ditch the handshakes and kisses on the cheek for now, keep 1.5m away from all people. If you are showing symptoms of a cold or flu, be honest with yourself and stay home.
We understand this is going to upset some people, but understand it’s been decided as a proactive measure to protect our DDPL family.
Sincerest Regards,
DDPL Executive Committee.