But given the spirit of community that has prevailed at each annual Community Cup since its inception in 1997, the weather doesn’t really matter. “We’ve got the Rockdogs and the Megahertz putting on a fine performance for the public, for our punters, for the fans, and great music as well,” Ballis says. “It doesn’t matter what the weather is, people just want to be there.”
The Community Cup is many things to many people: an extended social gathering, an exciting sporting contest, a festival of great local music, a major fundraising event for the Reclink organisation. The day revolves around a competition between two proud traditional rivals: the Megahertz, featuring volunteers and staff from community radio stations Triple R and PBS, and the Rockdogs, a motley collection of local musicians. The game itself is gender inclusive and the footy is always an entertaining (if often comical) spectacle. There’s music at half-time and after the game, and more community spirit than a Hillsong Church retreat.
“I love the thrills and the spills, the great atmosphere, the vibe of the day,” Ballis says. “You can’t help but feel like any other person when you see the Cup for the first time. I’ve had the privilege of seeing it on a number of occasions over a number of years. It’s a great community event.”
Reclink, a 26-year-old charity that develops and runs sport, recreation and arts programs for disadvantaged communities, has long prided itself on social inclusion. When the opportunity came up in 2009 to take over the organisation of the Community Cup, the charity jumped at the chance. “When we look around, when we see debate about diversity and creating a more socially inclusive environment, with more codes and sporting programs enabling all genders to be part of that experience – Reclink Community Cup was doing that years and years ago,” Ballis says.
While the Community Cup has been a major success for the past 20 years, it’s also a significant logistical effort. Teams of volunteers work with Reclink staff and contractors to organise the day. “The scale of the day, 10,000, sometimes more people, the logistics, the organisation, the number of volunteers, the level of detail in planning, certainly dwarfs anything else Reclink has done, but we’ve risen to the occasion,” Ballis says. Having spread its wings to Sydney and Adelaide over recent years, this year the Community Cup will be staged in all Australian capital cities.
This year will be the first Community Cup at Victoria Park, the historical and spiritual home of the Collingwood Football Club. Entertainment is headlined by Spiderbait, and features The Peep Tempel, Jen Cloher and REMI, as well as Deborah Conway and Willy Ziegler and She Said Fred performing The Go-Betweens’ Streets of Your Town. And to get the whole family in the mood, there’s Murray Wiggle and Wally Meanie’s Bubblegum Machine.
“The other thing about the day is the way the game’s played. You don’t have to be a professional to get out there and kick the footy,” Ballis says. “Having a team environment is a microcosm of our community and how we connect.
“We’ve got rules, you’ve got people looking out for each other and celebrating a win but also making sure if there’s a loss there’s a great deal of support internally. It’s a lot of camaraderie, a lot of thrills and spills, but also a lot of laughing at each other. It’s people having a great old laugh. It’s a great formula.”
So does Ballis have a tip for the day? Like just about everyone else in a footy tipping competition this season, Ballis isn’t prepared to make bold predictions. “This year both teams have been quiet about their strategies, so I’m sure we’re going to get some interesting upsets,” Ballis says. “My tipping in the AFL this year has been absolutely smashed. So if there’s any indication of what’s going to happen next week, it might be a complete upset.”
