Football’s Boss Hangs up his Boots

After 5 years leading Broken Hill’s premier Football code Peter Nash has stood down as Chairman of AFL Broken Hill.

In 2012 when AFL Broken Hill was formed Peter was elected as the inaugural Chairman, he led the newly formed Board and 4 clubs through some momentous changes which included the amalgamation of the senior and junior bodies.

Prior to 2012 the senior competition was run by the Broken Hill Football League and the juniors by a separate body, the Junior Football Association.

He was also the driving force behind the introduction of a Womens competition which has proved to be a huge success for the game in Broken Hill.

Under the guidance of Peter numerous improvements have been made to facilities at the local grounds and he was the instigator of the Jubilee Oval Volunteers group which spend countless hours improving the playing and spectator conditions.

The reason behind his decision to stand down centred on his business;

“The time is right to refocus on my business and with local retail operating in a challenging environment I need to spend more time working with my staff at Sampson’s“ Mr Nash said.

During his tenure the game saw the introduction of a Football Manager who oversees the running of the competition.

An appointment Nash feels has helped the game grow;

“I depart confident we have established a clear direction for administering AFL in Broken Hill and the game is in a healthy state despite a number of challenges”

At a specially convened meeting on Tuesday, November 8, the board approved Andrew Schmidt as acting Chairman until the AGM in February 2017.

At the AGM a vacancy has now been created and as such the Board will seek a new Director to fill the role, the directors will then vote on a new Chairman.

The acting Chair was full of praise for the outgoing chairman;

“I have been fortunate to have worked with some wonderful administrators and leaders and Peter is right at home alongside all of them“ Mr Schmidt said.

“He has overseen some of the biggest changes in the history of the game in Broken Hill and his enthusiasm and drive for a women’s competition has to be acknowledged“

The board will now work with Football Manager, Stacey Toohey to formulate a draw for 2017 and will be looking to hold a forum with the 4 clubs and umpires prior to Christmas.