IT was a homecoming of sorts for Keiran Ferguson, as he returned to the region for the AFL Umpire Roadshow program.
The COVID period prevented any in-person visits, but the AFL boundary umpire was joined by field umpire, John Howorth for a session with the Western District Umpires Association on Tuesday night.
Ferguson was born in Coleraine before relocating to Warrnambool and said it was exciting to come back and share some of his experience with others in a familiar environment.
“It is really good to get back and see people I haven’t seen for a while, it is good to get back to Hamilton and see what has changed and what hasn’t,” he said.
“It is a thing for all ages, all the way from little kids doing boundary umpiring to ex-players who want to hang around in the game and can help earn a bit of cash as well.
“It is a bit of a balancing act, but at a local level groups get together quite regularly to train together as well.
“Just give it a go, you will end up learning new skills and make new friends as well.”
Ferguson made his AFL debut in 2021 and helped put the local umpires through their paces at Melville Oval alongside Howorth.
With much of the focus on field umpires during games, Howorth said it was important to get out to other areas and help invest in the next generation of umpires.
“It is not something we have done in the past few years with covid, but the roadshows are back and we are visiting Horsham, Hamilton and Warrnambool and we are here to upskill local umpires and help with recruitment,” he said.
“Some of our best friends are umpiring, I have been umpiring for 20 years and so we love coming back to the community and see some faces we’ve worked with.”
While earning some extra cash, there are a lot of benefits to umpiring that can be utilised in other aspects of life.
“There is a piece around life development around accountability, solving conflicts and there are a lot of skills you can learn through umpiring,” Howorth said.
For anyone interested in getting in getting involved, contact the association.
The group trains each week and it is open for all ages, boys and girls.
