Riddell District Football Netball League is being elevated to Premier League level.
Member clubs have been verbally informed of the decision by AFL Victoria.
“One positive is that it will make it a lot easier for clubs to recruit really good players, and to retain them,” the league’s operations manager, Grace Bibby, said yesterday.
League CEO Jordan Doyle and the board of management have been working hard over a considerable period of time to lift the status of the league.
A move from the former ‘country’ designation to metropolitan level was one of the steps forward, with the Riddell League becoming a stand-alone entity rather than being part of AFL Goldfields.
The move of the Kyneton Football Netball Club to the Riddell League this season, and the emergence of Gisborne Giants to the stage they expect to field sides across all levels in 2025 was part of the league’s growth.
A population explosion in some areas has been taking place, or is being predicted.
KFNC president, Hayden Evans, welcomed the AFL Victoria decision.
He said he understood the Riddell League would now have the same status as the long-established Bendigo League.
“We have found Riddell is a very progressive organisation, and there’s no doubt our club has made the right move,” he added.
The RDFNL now has four permanent staffers, having overcome limited numbers in recent months.
