Yoogali has won a championship in a Capital Football-based league as recently as 2023, but will likely be removed from all Capital Football. Photo: Yoogali Football.
Given its rich history and an even more impressive on-field record, it makes sense that any football league in the country would want to host a successful regional club like Yoogali.
After defying all odds as a regional club nearly 4.5 hours away from Canberra – the National Premier Leagues Capital Football’s base of operation – it has found a way to compete with NSW and the ACT’s best clubs, winning the league in 2023.
Yet, after overcoming the challenges that come with being a small-town team and finding a way to be promoted to the top league that Capital Football offers, the Yoogali Soccer Club could be kicked from the competition.
Following a review by Capital Football of their National Premier League, a report concluded that removing several clubs, including Yoogali and Wagga Wagga, would be in the best interest of the league.
Clubs affected by the recommendation have up to 15 June to apply for exemptions and express their case to stay in Capital Football competitions, with final decisions to be made by 7 July.
The decision has left committee members of three clubs furious and confused, with Luke Santolin from Yoogali calling the recommendation “discrimination of the highest order”.
“It’s heartbreaking to be treated so insignificantly after all of the time, work, effort and money that we’ve put in not just participating in the league, but being one of its major players,” he said.
“If you look at our results on-field, it’s actually an amazing success story.
“A club from the regions with no resources, no player catchment and we didn’t just win the second division and earn our promotion, but we avoided relegation in our first season in NPL, when no one expected us to do so.”
Mr Santolin called out the “hypocrisy” of Capital Football and some of the oldest clubs within its leagues.
“The committee members of Capital Football who have made this decision are affiliated with other clubs. They’re affiliated with clubs that seem to benefit from our expulsion,” he said.
“If you dig deeper, there are some clubs, historic clubs in Canberra that are currently in the second division.
“There are clubs that wouldn’t be able to sleep knowing that they’re in Division Two, when a club from Griffith is taking what they believe to be their spot. This is what started the chain of events that’s led to this.
“Maybe they thought it would just be a flash in the pan, but now that they can see we’re not, we’re not just here for a little while, they’ve pushed us out.”
Mr Santolin said one of Capital Football’s reasons for removing the club from the organisation was due to the lack of junior teams, something several other clubs still invited to the league also didn’t have.
“We are actually doing everything we can to try and be a part of your competition,” he said.
“We’ve ticked every box that they’ve asked us to. It’s so hypocritical to say that we’re not going to let you in the league because you don’t have juniors.”
Mr Santolin said he and other members of the club would continue to push for Yoogali to stay in the league, but admitted the future was looking bleak.
“There was a double-page news article in the Sydney Morning Herald (SMH),” he said.
“What are those pages worth? Thousands and thousands of dollars, yet the SMH still felt it necessary to tell our story. Despite this, Capital Football hasn’t budged; they haven’t even thought about having conversations.”
The call to remove regional clubs from Capital Football is not reserved just for Yoogali, as Wagga City Wanderers’ senior sides have also been removed from the organisation’s leagues, essentially leaving all three clubs homeless.
Wagga City Wanderers’ Brooke Gayler confirmed the club’s under 23 and men’s teams will be “uninvited” to Capital Football competitions, but will have the opportunity to appeal the decision.
“In a review by Capital Football, they determined that Yoogali and our senior teams won’t be invited to their leagues from next year,” she said.
“We put in an appeal application for both the youth and men’s teams. So even though we haven’t been invited, we’re still going to push to play in their competitions.
“Without speaking too far ahead, it looks a little bit more promising for our youth than what it does for both our men and Yoogali men’s teams, but a decision won’t be made this week.
“Applications have got to be in by the end of this week, and then we will go through the whole process of working through applications and that type of stuff with the Capital Football board.”
