STATEMENTS BY MEMBERS

Mr REPACHOLI (Hunter) (13:40): What a day for the Weston Bears and for the best football region in Australia: the Hunter. After 31 years, the Weston Bears are northern New South Wales NPL champions again. This win belongs to the players, to the coaches and to every single volunteer, sponsor, former player and supporter who never gave up on the club.

No region does football community and loyalty better than the Hunter. Our mining towns and working-class communities have produced some of Australia's best footballers. Football is more than a game here; it is part of who we are.

Weston represents everything that is great about our region. The club was built by a mining community more than a century ago. Since then, generations of Bears have worn the black and white with pride.

And what a way to break a 31-year-old drought. In front of 2,350 fans at Darling Street Oval, Weston flogged Maitland 2-0. Luke McCormick scored just after the second half.

Max Wettig added the second soon after. Goalkeeper Gerard Roebuck kept a clean sheet, and McCormick won the DG Williams Medal. Congratulations to Damian Zane and his team.

The Hunter is football heartland, Weston are champions and, best of all, the Bears are back on top. I take my Weston Bears hat off to you all. Thank you.

Cheers.