Ground closures will occur every season due to wet weather or unsafe playing conditions. We would love to be able to play every week and as players, parents, and team officials, we understand how frustrating it is when we can’t play. The BDSFA is not responsible for ground closures. In the majority of cases, grounds will be closed by the local council when there has been a significant amount of rainfall or grounds have been damaged. It is important to remember that once council has deemed a field closed there may be fines applied for using the field. In some cases, clubs may deem a ground unsuitable for play and will make the hard decision to close the fields, clubs have a responsibility to prevent damage to council owned sporting fields. Even if the ground is deemed open by the council and the host club, a referee does have the power to deem the ground unsafe for play.
This is a Winter sport, and we will play in the rain. Games are not called off just because it is raining
Wet Weather Procedure
- Do not contact the BDSFA to enquire about field closures, check the Blacktown Council link below and look out for communication from your club.
- If significant rainfall has occurred during the week, fields may be shut prior to the weekend for the entire weekend. Where they are not shut for the weekend, clubs will assess their grounds and deem if they will stay open, and for which scheduled games. Clubs may only close some of the fields at their ground or may close the ground for shorter periods.
- Clubs will notify the BDSFA of any field closures and the BDSFA will notify clubs via their nominated weekend contacts. Notifications will also be sent via Dribl.
- Games may be moved to grounds that are still open. Clubs will be informed and Dribl will be updated to show these changes
- Unless notified via Dribl, assume your game is still on. Failure to arrive at a game will result in a forfeit and a fine to the club.
- The BDSFA will make every effort to reschedule matches within an appropriate time frame, this may include double header weekends or midweek matches. Rescheduled games will be sent via Dribl
Blacktown Council will communicate weekday closures of sporting fields via the below link
Blacktown City Council – Sports field closures
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For Phoenix League and WPL games please also see the following council websites
Cumberland City Council – Sports field closures
City of Parramatta – Sports field closures
Hills Shire Council – Sports field closures