Carlton President Richard Pratt’s official address prior to the Carlton home game against Fremantle.
The President announced Eddie Betts would be continuing with Carlton following his decision to re-sign with the Club this week. He also spoke about the work Carlton is doing in the Community at his pre-match address attended by over 350 guests at The Dome.
Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen,
Today we’re in the presence of what must be the greatest ever gathering of life members of the Carlton Football Club.
Some 70 men and women life members, are here as guests of the club. That’s more than a third of all Carlton’s surviving life members of the past seventy years.
It fills me with pride to look around the room and see some of the old faces . . . The past administrators, the coterie members, the board members, the staffers and the players for whom Carlton has meant so much for so long.
Together they epitomise all that’s good about this club.
It’s fitting that so many of our life members should be here in the week in which Carlton has secured 40,000 club members for the first time.
It’s also fitting that, like all of us, they’re part of what promises to be one of the most exciting eras in Carlton’s history – the rebirth of the blues.
To all the members who committed to the Carlton cause this year, i simply say “thankyou”. The board and I, along with everyone at Carlton, is doing our utmost to reward the faith you’ve placed in the cub.
Today’s impressive get-together is also a timely reminder that football clubs are also about people and about the community.
For example, our 40,000th member, is young Ben Clark. Ben is a brave little boy who’s waging his own war with cancer.
Ben personally received his membership ticket from our captain Chris Judd.
Chris and all the Carlton players hosted Ben in the rooms at training this week.
In an other community initiative, Carlton is hosting members of Melbourne’s international student fraternity here today. These are Indian and Chinese students who’ve never seen the bounce of the oval ball. But they’ll be cheering on the Blues nevertheless.
Today they along with everyone else, will watch as the AFL acknowledges the enormous contribution of indigenous players.
These include our own Eddie Betts. I’m pleased to say Eddie has just re-signed with Carlton for the next two years. Eddie will also be involved in the toss of the coin before the opening siren sounds.
Actually, ladies and gentlemen, it’s been a big week for Eddie. He’s also an offical environmental ambassador for Carlton. And together with Cameron Cloke and Jason Saddington, he paid a visit to pupils at Carlton Primary School this week.
These players, together with Jake Edwards and Paul Bower, are promoting Carlton’s and Visy’s enviornmental message to the kids.
Links to the community like these are a vital part of the role of all football clubs. And the board and i are keen to see a lot more engagement between Carlton and the community in the future.
But right now it’s all about the game.
So thanks to everyone for coming, enjoy the afternoon and …go Blues!!!
