By Bonny Burrows
Tiger fever ran high when the Richmond Football Club visited Kooweerup Regional Health Service on Monday.
A handful of the AFL club’s players joined residents and their families and friends for some afternoon bingo, brightening the day of all who attended.
Spokesperson for the health service Lauren Anderson said participants, including a couple of very passionate Richmond supporters, donned the club’s jersey colours for the afternoon and enjoyed meeting their footy idols.
“It was also a good cultural experience for our residents, who all had a lot of fun,” Ms Anderson said.
The visit was part of Richmond’s Community Camp for 2017.
Tigers captain Trent Cotchin said the community camps were a great opportunity for players to spend time with fans in Cardinia.
“We’ve got a really strong connection to this region through our partnership with the Cardinia Shire Council, our subsidiary organisation, Aligned Leisure operating the major recreation facilities in the area and, of course, our big member and supporter base,“ he said.
“We were able to visit 19 primary schools across the two days of the community camp, as well as participate in a super clinic in Garfield with a few hundred kids, which was great.
“During the school visits, the players delivered Tiger PAW, a program that teaches kids about cultural diversity, leadership and resilience.
“It’s really important to deliver those messages to young children and help them understand how we celebrate different cultures, be positive role models and rise above setbacks.“
